Time to Be An Everyday Hero
by Angel'sLove447
Summary: What if Max had chosen a more reckless way to save Chloe than to hit the fire alarm after reversing time? It makes for one heck of a reunion, that is for sure! A (hopefully well-paced) Pricefield friendship and romance! :) **Please note that the story will reference events from Episodes 2-5, but changes the course of the story from the first chapter!**
1. Chapter 1: Changing Destiny's Course

_Life is Strange: Time to be an Everyday Hero_

Disclaimer: The _Life is Strange_ franchise and its affiliated characters belong to Square Enix. All original characters are real people whose occupations have been changed. Names are used with permission.

Author's Note: This is my first story, but I really enjoyed writing it and am proud of what it turned into. I love how sometimes we are simply the vehicles for much bigger ideas! Anyway, compliments, encouragement, and constructive criticism are all welcome! I know that I am still growing as a writer. Please note that Max and Chloe both may seem slightly out of character (ooc) for this story! They likely seem a lot gentler than in the game. From a personal standpoint, it made them easier to work with! Hope you enjoy it!

 _Chapter 1: Changing Destiny's Course_

'No!' The voice in Max's head screamed as she saw the gun lifted once again toward her best friend.

In less than a second, she knew what she was going to do and her body starting working by itself. She ran out of her hiding place next to the stalls and ran toward Chloe. Then everything seemed to start moving in slow-motion.

She saw Chloe's surprised face as Max appeared in front of her vision.

She felt her feet leave the ground as she jumped toward her best friend.

She heard a loud BANG as Nathan's handgun fired a shot.

She felt a sharp pain in her stomach as the shot made contact with her.

The last thing she remembered before falling unconscious was Chloe shouting her name, full of concern for her well-being.

Max slowly opened her eyes as she began to come to.

She remembered being in class, somehow reversing time, going to the bathroom, running toward…

"Chloe!"

She sat bolt upright, before remembering that she took a bullet to the stomach.

…However, she found that she felt no pain whatsoever.

Examining the room around her, she noticed that she was alone and that someone had a really bad sense of interior design.

She was in a completely gray room. The walls were gray, the ceiling and floors were gray, and the door was…wait a minute…where was the door?

Max looked around, but could not find a door anywhere.

Fighting her panicked, claustrophobic nerves, she looked around and began to notice something.

Walls, no matter how bland their color scheme, had texture to them, whether smooth like chrome or rough like sandpaper. However, all she could see was a field of gray, and could not make out any discernable texture.

She attempted to stand up, only to find that the floors were the same as the walls around her. They seemed to extend infinitely downward, and yet she was not falling. She pushed down on the floor, and found that she encountered resistance, enough to help her stand. Still, she encountered none of the expected pain.

She walked toward where the walls would be, only to find that the gray seemed to stretch on and on without any end or any barriers of any kind.

Was she…dead?

Max felt her nerves relax somewhat as she realized that the place she was in, no matter where it was, wasn't as small as she initially believed. Still, she didn't know how to get out.

'This is beyond weird. First I rewind time, then I save Chloe by jumping in front of the bullet and then…the bullet!'

She looked around but realized that no one was around. Blushing anyway, Max slowly lifted her shirt to examine her stomach…

…which was flawless?

'Okay, I know that I took a bullet for Chloe, so why isn't there a gunshot wound here?'

"If it seems too good to be true, that's probably because it is, Maxine," said an unfamiliar voice.

Yanking her shirt back down and blushing furiously, she turned around and saw a face that seemed somewhat familiar, like she had seen it on…

"…You're the girl from the missing person posters! You're Rachel Amber!" exclaimed Max.

The girl smiled, "The one and only. You seem intelligent, if not a little reckless."

Rachel walked up to her and Max felt a little insecure. Rachel was even more gorgeous than the Missing Person posters had portrayed her as. She had dark blonde hair that was perfectly tamed and looked as smooth as silk. So much so, in fact, that Max had to hold herself back from reaching out and touching it. Rachel's hazel eyes twinkled with amusement, matching the small but not unpleasant smirk that she wore. She wore a pair of jeans with a few holes in it, a dark-colored t-shirt, and a denim jacket. She was very punk, and despite the fact that Max was far more hipster than punk, her casual style made Max feel at ease around her, if not envious of her nearly flawless physique.

Max flushed, "Well, I tend to be rather protective of my friends. I guess this time I overdid it."

Rachel shook her head, "Whether or not you overdid it is subjective, but the objective truth is that you did save Chloe and for that, you have my thanks."

Max asked, "Did you know her? I mean, I've been away for five years so I don't…"

"We were good friends. We probably could have been even closer had I not…well, we all make mistakes sometimes, and _most_ of us have to live with those decisions…" she trailed off with a pensive look, before turning back toward Max and smirking, "…though not _all_ of us."

Max looked embarrassed, "Look, I didn't even know that I could do that until today. I saw Chloe get shot, so my only instinct was to reach out toward her, and that was when I realized that I had reversed time." Max didn't quite realize how she knew that Rachel was referring to her 'powers', but she seemed to know more than she was letting on.

Rachel nodded, "Well, you _did_ have powers, but apparently you're more selfless than the universe originally thought."

Max looked upset, "I would anything to protect my friends! I…I may not be brave, but if somebody means something to me, then…then I have to do something! Even if it means…even if it means something bad happens to me!" It wasn't until she finished speaking that she realized that tears had sprung to her eyes and were now streaming down her face.

Rachel's expression shifted to concern, and she walked forward and enveloped Max, who slowly relaxed into her embrace and hugged her back.

"It's alright Max. I believe you. Hell, even if you did have time-travelling powers, you have to be hella courageous to take a bullet for someone," Rachel spoke softly.

Max laughed weakly, "I thought I was the only hipster here."

Rachel's expression changed into one of mock-seriousness, "Oh, you are. I'm more punk. Chloe is too. She adopted a lot of her vocabulary from me."

Max's thoughts shifted back to curiosity as her tears began to slow. She pulled away from Rachel just enough to look the girl in the eyes and said, "What exactly happened to me after I took the bullet for Chloe?"

Rachel smiled, turned to the right, and made a slashing motion in the air.

As if she had cut through paper, a circular shape appeared, about as tall as the two of them. You could have mistaken it to be a full-body mirror, until you realized that what Max was seeing was not her and Rachel but rather just Max, lying in a hospital bed, eyes closed. Sitting next to her, holding her left hand, was Chloe.

Max gasped, "Oh my goodness! Chloe's okay! Thank goodness!"

Rachel rolled her eyes, "Of course she's okay! That's because the person in the hospital bed jumped in front of a bullet for her. You're the reason she's alive, obviously! However, there are several things we need to talk about because of what you did."

Max looked worried and asked in a quiet voice, "Can I hold your hand while we talk then? I feel kind of lonely and disoriented right now."

Rachel's eyes widened briefly, but she smiled, sat down, and held out her hand. Max took a seat next to her and took her hand in her own.

Rachel looked at her and started, "Okay Maxine. I don't know who or what gave you powers, but someone gave you the ability to reverse time. This gave you a second chance to save Chloe. However…"

At that point, several more portal-like windows appeared, each showing different pictures of Max and Chloe.

"…this meant that more alternatives opened up to you. You could have ignored the bathroom, you could have hit the fire alarm, you could have kicked Nathan from behind…but you chose to jump in front of Chloe, and I don't think anyone expected that. What was most expected was this."

Many of the alternatives faded except for one, which moved next to the one showing Max in the hospital. It showed Max hitting the fire alarm.

"If you had done this, Chloe would have escaped, you two would have reunited, began solving the mystery of my disappearance…snuck into Blackwell, divulged secret files, befriended a drug dealer, discovered my fate, been drugged, and in the end…you would have had to decide what to sacrifice, because the time-travelling powers would have caused reality to shift far too much. Changing the course of time is futile Max, because changing one thing causes the dominoes to fall differently, you dig? This is called the Butterfly Effect. One butterfly's wings cannot be heard by human ears. However, get enough butterflies together, and the flapping of their wings can cause a hurricane to form given enough time."  
Max nodded, "Okay, I understand that, but what would I have had to sacrifice?"

Rachel tightened her grip and looked at her sympathetically, "You would have had to sacrifice the town of Arcadia Bay…or Chloe."

Max gasped, and it looked like she might have started crying again, but Rachel reminded her, "Remember, you didn't choose that reality."

Max kept her composure, but said, "But with my current choices, won't I have to make a similar choice since I used the power?"

Rachel smiled, "You already have. By being selfless and willing to sacrifice yourself, you destroyed the need for a cosmic reality backdraft. Your sacrifice cancelled the principles of Chaos Theory. However, cancelling out Chaos Theory also meant that you cannot operate within its principles anymore."  
Max understood, "In other words, I won't be able to reverse time again."

Rachel nodded, "You have a sharp mind, Maxine. You were able to alter the course of events and save Chloe. However, beyond that life will continue as normal. The dominoes are now falling in a different direction, but they will continue to stay on track."

Rachel took both of Max's hands and looked into her eyes, "Maxine, I need you to listen very carefully to me, okay? I know this is a lot to take in, but I need to tell you something very important."

Max nodded.

Rachel started, "Maxine, changing the course of time is not the only way to save lives or care for your friends. There are other ways too. Simply asking a friend if they are okay, checking in on them, encouraging them, withholding judgment…these are all ways that people can make a difference in the lives of others. You just have to make the decision as soon as you consider it rather than hesitating and missing the opportunity. Consider how much information you would give to someone you trusted rather than a complete stranger."

"I would tell them a lot more, and only if I felt as though they wouldn't judge me," Max voiced.

"Exactly! If someone trusts you, and they know you won't judge them, they will tell you a lot more than they would otherwise. I mean, who would you tell about your time-travelling experience, Maxine?" Rachel asked.

"I would tell Chloe and…that's it." Max replied without hesitation.

Rachel smiled, "You see, trust is very important. As long as you reach out to others, you can make a difference in their lives. You can change the path of the falling dominoes through your own power, Maxine. All it takes is a little bit of courage. Remember that how someone else might judge you are small potatoes compared to altering the course of a person's life. Nurses and doctors do this by doing all they can to save someone's life medically. Therapists help make the lives of people better by helping them heal emotionally. Police do all they can to protect the lives of other people. Even those who work in a grocery store, they work to make sure that parents can put food on the table for them and their children. Many people take these workers for granted, but they do make a difference."

Rachel's next words were the ones that Max would never forget, "Everyone has the power to change the world Max. The choices that people make are far more important than any abilities that they have. All our choices change the world, whether for good or for evil. You can be a hero or a villain. Most people walk the gray somewhere in-between."

Rachel squeezed Max's hand, and Max returned it.

Max said, "So, what happens now? I can see myself in that…portal, but I'm also here. What happened exactly?"

Rachel smiled, "You survived, but it was a close call. Right now, you're hovering between life and death, and I kept you here because I wanted to talk to you. I'm sure Chloe will explain everything to you. You'll have a scar where the bullet hit you, but try to remember it more as a reminder for everything that I told you today…and as a reminder of how much bravery you truly have."

Max smiled, and Rachel helped them both stand up.

"Simply walk through the portal and you will soon wake up in the hospital bed. Don't be as eager to walk around though. Unlike here, you are wounded in that world. I have lessened your pain, but you are still quite fragile."

"I understand. Thank you Rachel, both for explaining everything to me and for being so understanding with me," Max spoke with genuine gratitude.

She walked to the portal.

"However, I do have one question Rachel," Max said.

"What's that Maxine?"

"You say that you are Rachel, and yet you seem to know more than you let on. You never knew me, and yet you speak as if you have known me all your life. You speak with so much wisdom, yet you are the same age as me. Are you really Rachel or are you…God, in some form?"

Rachel pushed Max through the portal, and she felt herself drifting through time and space. She began to fall asleep as she drifted.

However, just before she lost consciousness, she heard Rachel's voice booming joyfully, "My dear Maxine, why can't I be _both_?"

With that, Max was brought back to the world of the living.


	2. Chapter 2: While You Slept

Discalimer: The _Life is Strange_ franchise and all affiliated characters belong to Square Enix. All original characters created are used with the express permission of their real-life counterparts.

 _Chapter 2: While You Slept_

As Max Caulfield returned to the world of the living, she was acutely aware of two things:

One, someone was holding her hand.

Two, she had to take her time opening her eyes because the light hurt way too much to take in at once. It was like after you had watched a movie in class in the dark and then the teacher turns the light on. It just seems to assault your senses. `

She held off on trying to open her eyes again, but she knew who was holding her hand regardless.

It was Chloe. It would always be Chloe.

She reveled in the warmth of Chloe's hand in her own lukewarm one. She gently squeezed Chloe's hand.

"Max?! Oh my God, Max! Are you alright?!"

"Hi Chloe," Max replied. Her voice came out raspier than she would have liked, but she doubted Chloe would care at this point.

She felt a pair of arms gently wrap around her. She felt the heat of Chloe's face near hers.

"I was so afraid of losing you, you dope!" Chloe exclaimed, her voice wavering. She was on the verge of crying, but Chloe was always the type of person to hold her emotions in check unless the event was just too much for her to bear. Nevertheless, she felt a few tears seep into her neck.

In a strange way, it was endearing to have Chloe cry over her. It was nice to know that someone cared for her that much.

"It's okay Chloe; I'm here. I'm not going to be leaving you anytime soon," Max replied in a soothing voice. She found that she could move her arms without any pain, so she lifted them and wrapped them around her longtime friend. If anything, Chloe just hugged her tighter.

"You almost _did_ though Max! Oh my God, when they loaded you onto the ambulance, they said that I couldn't come because they needed all the paramedics working around you. I yelled and say that I would be following right behind, even though I knew you couldn't hear me. I was so worried about you. You were kind of an idiot for jumping in front of a loaded gun you know."

Max laughed softly. Leave it to Chloe to come up with a witty remark to add to the end of a very touching rant.

"Hey, it was sudden and all I knew was that I wasn't going to let the bullet reach you. I may not have been around for a long time, but that doesn't mean I'm going to forget about you that easily."

"Well, it was one hell of a way for the two of us reunite. But uh, let's not meet like that again, alright? I don't think my heart could take another reunion like that," Chloe joked, though her voice got hitched in her throat. She had pulled away from Max, but squeezed her hand in reassurance.

Max attempted to slowly sit up, but found that her stomach was really tender, so sat up about halfway and adjusted her bed so she could better talk to her best friend. Then, she slowly began to open her eyes. At first, the room seemed very blurry, but it slowly began to come into focus.

The first thing that she focused her eyes on was the blue mass that became Chloe, who was holding her hand and looking at her with a gentle and caring expression on her face. Most of the time, Chloe was relaxed and retained a neutral expression. However, the compassion she had for Max was taking priority. It gave Max a warm feeling.

She squeezed Chloe's hand back and said, "I promise that we won't reunite like that again Chloe," she said, smiling. Chloe smiled back at her. "But I will not hesitate to protect you. I don't regret what I did at all. If it meant saving your life, then I am satisfied with what happened."

Chloe look stunned, and tears starting escaping the corners of her eyes.

Max realized that this was the first proper conversation they were having in nearly five years. She wanted to make sure that she told Chloe how much she still meant to her. Rachel's words echoed in her head _"As long as you reach out to others, you can make a difference in their lives."_

"Chloe, I want you to know something. I know that we haven't talked in years, and I am sorry if it felt like I was abandoning you. That was never my intention, and I had no control over what happened. However, I am back now and while I know that we can't mend five years of separation in one afternoon, I would like to try to do so after I get out of the hospital."

Chloe gasped, blushed, and voiced, "Yeah Max…I'm not gonna lie. It hurt like hell when you left. I know that it wasn't your decision, but it still hurt a lot. I…would like to repair our friendship. I have to say though…you have a hell of a head start on that with what you did for me." She smiled after that last statement.

The two friends smiled at each other and squeezed the other's hand. It was something that they needed to say to clear the air; otherwise it would just become stifling later.

"So what happened after I…was shot?" Max asked, still tripping about the fact that she was taken a bullet.

"Well, I knocked Nathan flat on his face, and that caused his gun to go skidding across the bathroom floor. As soon as I knew he was knocked out, I ran to my step-dou…father and he called the paramedics immediately. He confiscated Nathan's gun and put him in zip-cuffs. He notified the principal and he cleared the hallway for the EMTs. I gotta admit that David did a good job of controlling your bleeding until the paramedics arrived. He also knew that I wasn't going anywhere and so he had me help him out. There was quite a crowd around the hallway as the paramedics arrived and loaded you onto a gurney in record time. I wanted to ride in the ambulance with you, but the paramedics asked me to follow behind instead because they needed everyone working on you. Apparently, they didn't know if any of your internal organs had been ruptured, and they pronounced you critical when we arrived at the hospital. It wasn't until an hour or two had passed before you were finally pronounced stable. David actually drove me, and he would have stayed, but he said he had to get back to the school to deal with Nathan.

"That was all yesterday. Today I learned that Nathan told authorities that Mark Jefferson, the art teacher, was utilizing his family's underground bunker to drug and photograph students without their consent. However, I learned that Nathan…he…he…he killed Rachel!"

At this point, Chloe just broke down and started sobbing.

"Chloe, come here," Max whispered, holding her arms out to her longtime friend.

Chloe complied, holding on to Max for support and comfort as she cried about Rachel. Max didn't know that she had passed away, only that she had spoken to her in limbo. She should have put the dots together earlier, but she had been so busy listening to Rachel's wisdom that she hadn't realized that when Rachel said 'figured out her fate', she meant that she had been killed!

Chloe's eyes darkened, "I found out that he had drugged Rachel and had her photographed in that bunker without her consent. However, he overdosed her on the drugs and ended up murdering her instead, and then hid the body underground in the junkyard." By this point, Chloe had entered a new round of sobbing, and was clinging to Max. Max held her gently and rubbed her head as she worked through her grief.

"I'm so sorry you lost her, Chloe. I know that you two were very close," Max spoke softly, holding her friend close and rubbing her back gently.

As Chloe's tears slowed, she pulled away from Max with a puzzled expression on her face.

"Yeah, she was hella important to me…but how do you know that Max?"

Max realized that she had spoken with information that Rachel had given to her. She knew that she wasn't going to hold anything back from Chloe, so she decided to be honest, but she wanted Chloe to finish recounting events on her end first.

"You haven't been the only busy person in the past day or two," Max spoke seriously. "Why don't you finish telling me about what happened and then I'll tell you what happened on my end?"

Chloe looked curious, but dropped it for the moment.

"Beyond that, not much has happened. Mr. Jefferson was arrested, and a thorough investigation of the underground bunker is underway. I've been staying by your side ever since, asking every God I know of to make sure that you're okay. Another girl came by this morning. She stayed by your side until an hour or two before you woke up, saying she had to attend her afternoon classes. Does the name Kate Marsh ring any bells?"

Max smiled, so happy that one of the few people at Blackwell she really liked had cared enough to come see her. She would have to thank her when she was able to go back to Blackwell.

"Now enough about what Super Sleuth Chloe has been up to. Tell me how you know that Rachel and I were friends," Chloe pressed.

"Chloe, what I am going to say is going to sound absolutely bizarre, but I ask that you withhold any sort of judgment about it until I finish. Can you do that?"

Chloe merely nodded, far too intrigued to worry about how bizarre things were about to get. She was clearly intrigued about how Max had facts that she couldn't possibly know without having talked to either Chloe or Rachel first.

"Okay, so I remember being shot, but I lost consciousness soon after that. I did hear you yelling my name though," Max smiled at Chloe, clearly happy that Chloe remembered her. Chloe blushed knowing that Max had heard her.

"Anyway, when I woke up, I was in a gray…space. It wasn't a room because there were no walls, but everything was gray. I also noticed that I wasn't in any pain despite being shot. Then, I heard a voice, and I turned around to see Rachel standing there…"

Max continued to speak to Chloe for a half hour regarding what Rachel had told her, from the time travel powers, to the meaning behind her sacrifice, to learning about the relationship between Chloe and Rachel, to the words that Rachel had told her about how reaching out to others can make a big difference, and about how Rachel might have also been some sort of deity.

For her part, Chloe never interrupted her once, although her expression changed from amusement, thinking that Max was having her on or the medication was tripping her, to shock, to sadness, to intrigue. When Max finished recounting her story, Chloe was silent.

"It sounds like, even though she 'left' me, she really did care about me and regrets leaving me in the dark on some things. Now that I know Jefferson killed her, I will make that bastard pay for it. At least I know that God Rachel is watching over me." Chloe smirked at the last bit, not really knowing whether or not there was a God. If there was, Rachel was the best avatar.

By now, Max was feeling tired, knowing that her body was still recovering, and her painkiller was making her drowsy. She promised Chloe that she wasn't lying to her, and that she would happily answer any question Chloe thought of when she woke up again and felt more alert.

Max told Chloe to eat and get some rest, and she would text her when she felt better. Chloe left Max's phone on the bedside table so she could reach it when she woke up. With one gargantuan effort, Max sat up completely and the two friends embraced each other.

"I'm really glad to see you again Max," Chloe whispered in her ear.

"I feel the same way Chloe, and I promise that I won't leave you again," Max promised.

Max lay back and Chloe took her hand and squeezed it before she left. Max shut her eyes and let sleep overtake her. Her dreams were filled with a certain blue-haired girl, and the two of them were making cookies together, just like when they were younger.

The nurse who was checking up on Max smiled when he saw that, despite being asleep, his patient had a smile on her face.


	3. Chapter 3: Like We Never Left

Disclaimer: The _Life is Strange_ franchise and its affiliated characters belong to Square Enix. All original characters' names are used with the express permission of their real-life counterparts!

Hope you continue to enjoy the story! It may become more clear that Chloe and Max are gentler than their in-game characters in this chapter, but I was hoping to balance it out with the constant banter that these two wonderful characters share! Hopefully it shines through! :)

 _Chapter 3: Like We Never Left_

Max woke up again, not knowing what time it was. She reached over to her bedside table and checked the time.

4:00 a.m.

She allowed herself to recline slowly. She was wide-awake, and it was before the crack of dawn. Oh well, waking up early did have its benefits, even if she didn't believe in getting up _this_ early. 6:00 a.m. was acceptable, 5:30 a.m. was pushing it, but how early do people have to go to sleep in order to get up at 4:00 a.m.?

Max allowed her mind to drift to thoughts of her long-lost friend. Bridging the time gap between her and Chloe was already going well. Supposedly, throwing yourself in front of a gun did things like that. She sincerely advised against doing it though. It was riskier than playing roulette.

Max genuinely wanted time to catch up on what happened in the past five years since they last saw each other. Chloe's hair was now dyed blue, and she wanted to know what prompted her to do that. Chloe had always had dark blonde hair as they were growing up, very similar to Rachel's come to think of it. Was it part of Rachel's influence or did something happen that prompted her to dye it?

She also wanted to tell Chloe about what had been going on in her life for the past several years as well. She hoped she could make Chloe laugh with stories of her misadventures, show her pictures of what Seattle was like, and reminisce about the days before she left as well. If the two of them could bridge the time gap, they could continue on as if nothing had ever happened.

She smiled wistfully to herself as she realized just how close her and Chloe had been before she moved to Seattle. They had been as close as sisters, and Joyce often commented on how Max was like a second daughter to her. She and Chloe had always had sleepovers with each other, playdates were commonplace, they took plenty of pictures together, and they both played video games, though Max more so than Chloe. She wondered just how much their interests had changed or evolved over the years, or how much had stayed the same.

Her reminiscence was interrupted by a nurse coming in to check on her. It was a young male nurse who looked to be in his mid to late 20s. He had brown wavy hair that was parted in the middle. He had deep ocean-blue eyes. All in all, he was very handsome, but Max loved his beaming smile the most, which immediately put her at ease.

"Good Morning, Max. My name is Andrew, and I will be taking care of you while you are here," he said. "May I have a seat next to you?"

Max nodded. It was nice that the nurse was being so considerate of her feelings and boundaries. He pulled up a chair next to her and smiled as they were at eye level with each other.

"How are you feeling this morning Max?" he asked gently.

"I'm feeling alright. I don't seem to be experiencing any pain, just some tenderness around the stomach area. I'm guessing that's where the bullet hit?" Max questioned.

Andrew nodded, "You were very lucky Max. The bullet failed to rupture any organs other than the stomach. We were able to remove the bullet and suture the wound. You will have a small scar, but the stitches have been closing well and you should be ready to be discharged tomorrow. You won't want to do any major lifting or stretching for about two weeks, but there should be no lasting complications."

Max nodded her understanding, looking relieved.

"You have a very devoted friend, you know. She's been here ever since you were admitted and hasn't left. I prepared a place for her to get some rest, but she's been constantly been ever by your side. Clearly she cares a lot about you. She mentioned to me how you haven't seen each other for some time and this incident is how you two were reunited. You were a very brave person to do that for her. Nurses and doctors are often praised as heroes for our work, but it's very brave to put yourself in a dangerous situation in order to save someone else's life other than your own. That is what makes an everyday hero," he smiled at her, and she felt praised.

Max smirked, "It feels kind of weird though. I save a life and suddenly I'm heralded like a hero, and yet every day you save hundreds of lives and you're just seen as a nurse."

"That just comes with the title, young lady. Now if you need anything, just press the blue button and I'll be here as soon as I can, alright? There is a certain blue-haired friend who wants to see you and is waiting outside the room. You want me to let her in to see you?" he grinned at her.

Max had to admit, this nurse had a good sense of humor. "She's probably going to get on your back for taking so long already," she retorted.

Andrew laughed, "Then I'd better not make my situation worse, huh? It was nice talking to you Max."

Max had one question before he left, "Why did you take the time to sit down and talk to me? I'm sure you have other patients you need to see."

Andrew smiled gently at her, "At 4:30 in the morning, most of our patients are asleep, and so we merely check on them. Since you were awake, I wanted to make sure you know that many of us here do care. We do our best to treat people, but I want my patients to know that I genuinely care about their emotional well-being just as much as their physical well-being. Besides, I truly admire what you did. In this case Max, you're the hero." He let that sink in for a moment before cheekily adding, "Just remember, there are other ways to save lives that are less dangerous."

With that, he stood up. Max was really touched by what he said.

"Andrew, thank you for checking on me…Could I, um…could I get a hug from you, please?" she asked.

He smiled at her, his eyes full of care, "Of course, Max. I love hugs myself."

He leaned down and hugged her just as tightly as she did. He really did care about his patients.

With that, he walked to the door, smiled, and opened the door enough to let a blur of blue hair fly into the room.

She looked at him crossly, "What took you so long? I was about to let myself in you know."

He smiled at her, "I was getting to know your hero better. She seems to be a wonderful person."

Chloe grinned, "So you were flirting with my bae, huh? Watch it Max. Men are pigs."

Andrew grinned back, "I assure you, my intentions were chaste. Some men may be savage or have ulterior motives, but you will find that some of us really do care." With that, he left the room, closing the door behind him, leaving it open just a crack.

Chloe turned to Max, still grinning, "Was he hitting on you, Max?"

Max smiled at her best friend, "No, he wasn't. He said he just cared about the emotional well-being of his patients. He said that I was an everyday hero for what I did."

Chloe walked over to Max and sat down, "Okay, just don't let him lead you on. I'll admit, he's a lot nicer than most of the nurses here, and one of the only male ones on the staff. Don't let him woo you though, girlfriend."

Max pretended to swoon, "I shall try not to fall desperately in love with him, Chloe, but 'twill be a difficult battle."

Chloe swatted her arm playfully, "You dork."

They shared a laugh together before Max decided to try and begin bridging the gap between them.

"Hey Chloe, what caused you to change your hair? I mean, it's rad, but your style has changed completely from when we were kids." Max asked, trying to segue into a conversation.

To her surprise, Chloe's expression turned slightly downcast. "It was mainly Rachel's influence. She knew I was angry about everything happening in my life, with my Dad dying and you leaving. She took me shopping, and I liked how the look emphasized my mood. Eventually, I changed about half of my wardrobe as I started growing, and she thought I would look good with my hair dyed, which is what led to this.

"I kind of kept it this way hoping that I would be easy for her to find if she ever came back. Now that I know what happened to her, I might let my natural hair grow back in." She allowed herself a small smile, "Now that you're back, I feel that would let us look like sisters again."

Max reached over and took her hand. "I would love to get a shot of us when I get out of the hospital, Chloe. I'm not going to tell you how to style your hair Chloe, but I'll get one us of us like this when I leave the hospital, as a farewell to your blue hair if you want."

Chloe smiled gently at her friend, "Thanks Max. I would like that."

Chloe shifted the conversation, "So what have you been up to for the past five years. I'm sure you were living happily in Seattle." There was an undercurrent of bitterness in her words, and Max flinched slightly.

Chloe sighed, "I'm sorry Max. It's still hard for me to accept the fact that you were gone for so long. There was a lot to handle in that time, and it felt like all my friends deserted me. I mean, I am very happy that you're back, but I feel like you're just going to leave my life again as soon as I get my hopes up."

Max squeezed Chloe's hand in a reassuring manner, "Chloe, I promise you that I am not leaving you again. If I leave this town, then I'm taking you with me. Even when I was in Seattle, I never had any friends who I was even remotely as close to you as you and I have been. You are my soul sister, a friend that I can never let go of."

Chloe smiled at her, "You're a real sap you know that? I do love the words you say though. I feel like I can really believe them."

Max reached for her other hand, "When I was in Seattle, I only took a few pictures that I really treasure. Of course I took an obligatory Space Needle picture, but I often looked at the photo albums we made together. None of the pictures I took hold a candle to the ones we took together. I hope that we can make more of them." Max and Chloe had filled about three photo albums with the pictures that they took together. They made the albums together, adding decorations and captions as they saw fit.

Chloe had a flash of memory on her face, "Oh yeah! Do you remember the picture we took of the two of us on the bench by the lighthouse? That was one of my favorites! We totally should take another one when you're discharged! That would be hella awesome, even just to compare them."

Max blushed, "We could even start a new album with it, too."

Chloe seemed really excited, "Yes, we should totally do that! It will be the consummation of our reunion!"

Max laughed, "Whatever you say weirdo. We will make sure that's the first picture after I get out tomorrow."

Chloe's eyes lit up, "You get out _tomorrow_? That's fantastic! Did your nurse-lover tell you that?"

Max huffed, "He's _not_ my lover. He's just a really nice nurse. He told me that I should be discharged tomorrow as long as everything looks good."

Chloe rolled her eyes, "You _already_ look good. He probably just wants to keep you here another day so he can _look_ at you some more." Her eyes had a suggestive glint in them.

Had Max been up and able, she would have playfully shoved her friend, so she settled for trying to swat Chloe's arm, but Chloe saw it coming, so she pulled her arm away. This resulted in Max banging her still-moving hand on the rail of the bed.

"Ow!"

"Hahaha, that's what you get when you mess with the master of signals!" Chloe laughed.

Max glared at her for a moment before dissolving into laughter herself.

The two girls continued to talk throughout the morning and well into the afternoon. They had lunch together, which basically meant that Max ordered twice as much as she would eat so Chloe could eat as well without having to pay. They continued to laugh, talk, and regain their comfort level with each other. Max was on far less pain medication now, so she was able to stay awake for much longer. Things seemed just like they were before Max ever left. Clearly there was more that both wanted to talk about, but in a more private setting than a hospital. Other than that, things were looking good. They were engaging in their never-ending banter; Max was being a sappy hipster, Chloe was someone between who she was five years ago and a rebel, and neither was withholding anything from the other. They were friends again.


	4. Chapter 4: Never Let Me Go

Disclaimer: The _Life is Strange_ franchise and its affiliated characters belong to Square Enix. All original characters and their identities are used with the express permission of their real-life counterparts.

A sincere thank you to all the people who have reviewed the story or are currently following it! I have really appreciated the feedback and it is encouraging to know that my first story on this site is getting positive reception! I hope it continues to make you happy! :)

 _Chapter 4: Never Let Me Go_

When Max next awoke, it was to the sound of her cell phone ringing and the door opening at the same time. However, as she turned to answer the phone, she noticed the door closing. She expected the phone to be Chloe, but it was not.

It was her parents.

"Hello?" Max spoke.

"MAX, honey! Are you alright?" exclaimed the voice of her father, Clyde. It was clear that he had been worried about her for some time. The relief to hear his daughter speak was evident in his voice.

Max smiled. Even though she didn't contact her parents frequently, she still loved them dearly. It pained her knowing that they had probably heard about the incident a while back, but didn't know the details.

"Hi Dad," she spoke softly.

"Oh Max, I'm so happy to hear you're okay! Are you in any pain? Are they treating you well?"

"Dad, I'm okay. I haven't been in much pain at all. I have a kind nurse named Andrew taking care of me. They said that I could be discharged today as long as everything looks okay. I just can't do any major lifting for about two weeks," Max told him.

"I'm glad to hear that you're recovering well, honey," he spoke, emotion still resounding clearly in his voice. "I'm sorry we haven't been able to visit you, but your mother only got back late last night from her business trip. As soon as she heard about you, she got on the next flight home, but it took all day yesterday," he said, sounding remorseful that they hadn't been at her bedside earlier.

Max understood that. Her family had always had two cars, but only a few weeks ago one of them had reached its last mile. Her parents were working on getting another car, but in the meantime they only had one. If her father had come early, her mother would have been stranded at the airport in Seattle, and there weren't any airports near Arcadia Bay where her father could pick her up. They were caught in a jam at the most inconvenient moment.

Max noticed herself getting choked up as well, "Dad, it's alright. In the meantime, Chloe has seldom left my side. I know my friend Kate came by to see me as well, even if it was while I was resting, so I haven't been alone at all. You don't have to visit if it's inconvenient; I'm getting discharged today and then I'm returning to school either tomorrow or the day after."

"I'm glad to hear that both you and Chloe are okay. It sounds like she's quite devoted to you, even after all these years. Even when you were young, you two were inseparable. It's nice to know that hasn't changed. Your mother and I may visit you this weekend, if that's alright. I know you have school, but we want to make sure you're okay," Clyde spoke. Even though he was still choked up, you could tell he was smiling as he spoke about her and Chloe.

"Your Mom wants to talk to you, Max. We'll be visiting you at Blackwell in a few days. Love you sweetie!"

"Love you too Dad!" Max said.

"Hello Max, dear," her mother, Robyn, spoke gently. "How are you?"

Max reveled in hearing her mother's gentle voice. In her family, her father was the more emotional one while her mother was always more of a brass tacks and down-to-Earth sort. However, she knew that her mother could be just as gentle as her father was when it came to her well-being.

"I'm doing fine, Mom. I haven't been in much pain at all, and Chloe has been keeping me company this whole time. I have a good nurse who has been keeping a close eye on me. I should be getting out today, so hopefully I'll be able to go back to school in a day or two." Max didn't beat around the bush with her mother, but still spoke gently to her.

You could hear her mother's smile through the phone. "Chloe is still sticking with you through it all, huh? I'm glad to hear that you two have found each other again. Max, your principal has told us what happened and we were wondering if you could release to the police a statement of what happened. You won't have to attend the trial, but your testimony would help the jury decide what to do about both Mr. Prescott and Mr. Jefferson. Would you be willing to do that?"

Max's stomach turned at the thought of reliving those awful moments again, but she knew that it would be for the best if she released a statement as well. It was far better than going to the trial; that was for sure. She could never look at Nathan or Mr. Jefferson the same way again.

Max swallowed, "Yeah Mom, I could do that. Would I give it while I'm here or at Blackwell?"

"Honey, I want you to know that you're being very brave by being willing to do that. I'm sure it isn't going to be easy thinking about that incident again, but you'll be making a difference. I'll call the police there and ask them if they would be willing to take a statement from you before your discharge." Her business concluded, her voice softened again, "Max, your father and I love you very much and we'll see you this weekend, okay? Make sure Chloe keeps you out of trouble."

Robyn's words made Max smile. Her mother always was always on the same wavelength as her when it came to her thoughts. However, she also was the voice of logic when she got too emotional. It was good to have her around when her thoughts were scrambled or irrational.

Max laughed at the mention of Chloe, "I'll be sure to tell her that Mom, though it may be the other way around! Love you too! Bye!"

With that, she hung up. No sooner had she placed the phone on her bedside table than did her favorite blue-haired friend walk through the door.

"I didn't know who it was, so I wasn't going to intrude on your conversation," Chloe said, striding over to the chair and sitting down next to her.

Max smirked, "I thought you didn't give a damn about common courtesy."

Chloe blushed, "Well, I usually don't, but I'll make an exception in your case. I don't know, I kind of feel like I have to be on better behavior when I'm around you. With Rachel, I didn't care so much. Your influence is different though and…and I don't want to lose you too."

Max's eyes shone with determination, "Chloe, you aren't going to lose me. I promise I am not leaving you anymore…not unless you're coming with me."

Chloe had the decency to look sheepish, "I know you have reassured me numerous times already, in like, less than 48 hours," she allowed herself a smirk before turning serious again. "I'm still just tripping out on how you managed to dramatically reappear after being gone for five years in order to save me from a gunshot." She squeezed Max's hand to remind her just how grateful she was for it.

Max wiped the tears from her eyes, "Yeah, but now we're back in action. Think of it as finding your first mate after she was knocked overboard or something."

Chloe snorted, "Max, if you had fallen overboard, I would have jumped in to save you. As my first mate, you are my number one priority." The two friends shared a smile with each other.

The 'number one' comment made Max think of something she had wanted to ask Chloe for a while now. "Chloe, when the nurse came in the other day, you told him that I was your bae. What did you mean by that?"

Chloe was not the type of person to be easily embarrassed, so it was quite a sight for Max to see as Chloe blushed to the roots of her hair and attempted to stutter out an answer, "Um, well you see, Max I…I…"

An unexpected knock at the door saved Chloe from Max's thoughtful question as the door opened to reveal a friendly looking police officer and Nurse Andrew as well. The police officer looked to be about the same as Andrew, Max guessed in his mid to late 20s. His hair was styled differently and had a more muscular build than Andrew, but he still had a kind smile just like Andrew.

"Good morning, Max. My name is Officer Thomas. Your mother told me that I could get a statement from you. I know that this is rather abrupt, but I was wondering if you be willing to answer a few questions for me right now? If it's a bad time or too sudden, we can always talk another time. I don't want to put you on the spot, especially since you are still recovering."

Max was slightly claustrophobic, and she squeezed Chloe's hand for support as she nodded her agreement to answering his questions now. Noticing her discomfort, Andrew backed up slightly and sat against the opposite wall to give Max some space. The officer surprised Max by bringing up a seat next to her, sitting opposite Chloe.

"Max," Officer Thomas began, "I know that police officers can be scary when you become an adult. However, you need not fear anything from me. Only Nathan and Mr. Jefferson have anything to fear. However, I will be asking you very direct questions. If I ask any question that you will not or cannot answer, you can choose not to answer it. If you need a few moments to compose yourself, I can give you that time. If you are confused as to why I'm asking a question, you can look to me for clarification. Also, you don't need to censor yourself around me. You can speak candidly."

Max was stunned at how much the officer seemed to break from the traditional mold of being gruff and impassive. Thomas seemed to be intelligent and direct, but not mean or apathetic. He would be the kind of person you would want to be around if you were in danger. He was quite capable and intelligent, but also caring and level-headed.

"Okay," Max replied, her gaze drawn to Andrew, who was just chilling in the chair across from her. He smiled back at her.

"Don't worry about me Max," Andrew replied. "My job here is to make sure that Officer Thomas here doesn't cross any legal boundaries or cause you any great distress. It's one of our procedural safeguards for our patients' well-being." He flashed a brilliant smile, which made her smile.

"Alright then," Thomas started, "How did you witness the confrontation between Mr. Prescott and Ms. Price?"

"I was in the restroom against the far wall when he walked in. He seemed almost manic, rambling on and on about trying to stay cool and about how much money his family had. Chloe came in afterwards, talking about how...he owed her money. Their argument escalated and that is when Nathan pulled a gun on her." Max told him, easily answering the question. Giving the setting was the easy part. It would be what happened next that would be harder for her.

Thomas kept his eyes on Max as much as possible without staring. His face was straight, and he seemed to be taking notes on very specific things that Max said. It would have seemed unnerving if he hadn't made his intentions clear beforehand.

"Alright, that explains the setting. So Mr. Prescott didn't know you were there then?"

Max realized it was more of an afterthought than a direct question, so she merely nodded her head instead of giving a verbal affirmation.

"Can you tell me what happened next, Max?" Thomas asked softly.

Max took a deep breath and glanced at Chloe for support. Chloe squeezed her hand in support and Andrew mouthed the words 'You can do it' silently.

"Once Nathan pulled out the gun, Chloe changed from arguing to…asking him to put the gun away. She didn't provoke him further in any way, but Nathan just kept yelling about how no one would miss Chloe if she were gone." At that point, Max gave Chloe's hand a big squeeze, just to make sure she knew that Max clearly cared deeply about her, and Chloe returned that squeeze.

"At that point, I…I crept out from around the wall in order to intervene. Nathan's body language and words made it clear that he wasn't calming down. Seeing my long-time friend made me want to protect her, so I jumped in between Chloe and Nathan."

Max had to stop again, remembering everything again in slow-motion, but in two separate timelines. There was one where Max had jumped in to save Chloe, but there was also one where she hadn't reacted. Feelings of guilt, anguish, shame, anger, courage, and relief all fought inside her, and anguish won out. She reached out for Chloe who instantly moved from her chair to Max's bedside and held Max in her arms as she sobbed loudly. Andrew's face had a look of concern, but he made no move to make Thomas leave. He had been aware that this may happen, but it pained him to see his patients in such distress.

Thomas sat back in his chair, gazing sympathetically at the pair. His glance shifted to Andrew, who nodded at him to let him know that he wasn't in over his head and to just give it time. The two of them were actually long-time friends, and it had been Thomas who had asked if he could be the one to take the statement at the hospital. The two were a good team. They were steadfast about their jobs, but were able to easily communicate their intentions and limits to each other. Being friends and video game buffs had made sure that they had seen each other at their best and worst.

Chloe held her friend tightly. She didn't know what was going through Max's head, but she could wager a guess. Since Max told her all that had happened, she guessed Max was feeling guilty. She leaned close to Max and whispered, "It's not your fault. You saved me." Chloe was not one for getting emotional, but Max was the one person who could coax it out of her. She decided on a different tactic. This time, she whispered, "I'm here for you Max. Always."

At this, Max's sobbing gently subsided. Max slowly lifted her head to see Chloe, gazing at her with admiration and kindness. Max's heart surged with love toward her long-standing friend, a friend who had never truly given up on her, and a friend who she was still willing to sacrifice herself for again if need be. In that moment, she knew that would be one friend she could always count on to be there for her. She could be emotional without having to hide it. She could speak her mind without the fear of ridicule. She could be herself without having to give up her dreams or any aspect of her personality. Sure, they would banter and tease each other back and forth, but it was always in jest, never serious. It was a friend she could truly never replace. She acted on instinct, and raised her lips to Chloe's cheek. Max kissed her cheek, squeezed Chloe again, and moved away slowly, always keeping her hand intertwined with Chloe's.

Chloe's mind was racing. Max had just kissed her, and she had…liked it? She certainly wasn't going to complain, but what had brought that on? Was it just the words she had said? Did those words mean that much to Max? Chloe wasn't going to write it off, but she had to put it aside until they were alone again. She gave Max a small, genuine smile and continued to hold her hand.

Max drew in a heaving breath, and continued, "At that point, I can only remember snapshots. I remember seeing Chloe's face change to surprise as I charged out of my hiding place, I…I remember… jumping in front of her, feeling a pain in my side, and hearing Chloe call my name. I don't even remember hitting the floor."

Thomas nodded at her. His face was still neutral, but his eyes had sympathy for her. "Ms. Price, could you fill in the details of what happened with Max? Is that acceptable?" He asked not only Chloe, but Andrew as well.

Andrew motioned to Chloe, who shrugged.

"After I heard the gunshot, I kicked the douche in the face and the groin so he dropped the gun and stumbled to the floor. Luckily, the security office was right down the hall, so I yelled for my step-father, who came running. He notified paramedics and instructed me on how to slow the bleeding while he took Nathan into custody. The paramedics came and took Max, the police took the asshole, and I followed Max here." There was no hesitancy in Chloe's voice, but rather a desire to push the incident behind them. Not so much for her sake, but for Max's. Chloe did not remember the version of time where she was shot, but Max certainly did.

Thomas nodded to Chloe. He didn't mind her coarse language. Hell, he would love to give that young man some punishment himself. He held out his hand and shook Max's gently.

"You're a very brave young woman Max. I'll make sure the right people know what you did for Chloe and what Mr. Prescott did. If you're ever out in Arcadia Bay and someone gives you trouble, give us a call. We're here for you." With that, he walked out of the room. Andrew flashed Max and Chloe a brilliant smile and a thumbs-up before escorting Thomas out.

As soon as the door closed as far as it was going to, Max latched herself on to Chloe again, and Chloe made it easier by lying next to Max in her hospital bed. She wasn't crying, but simply wanted to be close to her best friend.

Chloe held her again and whispered, "I'll always be here for you Max."

"I know that Chloe. It meant a lot to me that you would say that. It means so much to me that you're my best friend. I'm glad you're always there for me," Max replied.

'I guess that solves that mystery' thought Chloe. 'Still, that was a nice kiss.'

The friends spent the remainder of the morning together, simply talking to each other. Max's statement left the air highly emotionally charged, and the two of them were physically inseparable for practically the whole morning, knowing that their friendship was stronger than it had ever been since Max came back.


	5. Chapter 5: Adventures of Two Pirates

Disclaimer: The _Life is Strange_ franchise and all its affiliated characters belong to Square Enix. All original characters and their identities are being used with the express permission of their real-life counterparts.

Thank you to everyone who has been checking out this story so far. I have enjoyed and truly appreciated everyone's thoughts on the story so far. A reviewer pointed out that Max's parent's names are Ryan and Vanessa, but these names just felt right when I was writing, so that is why I went with them. It does not have too much bearing on the overall story though, in case that bothers anyone.  
I hope that the pacing of the story has been good so far. I am working on making a slow burn, but keep in mind that the story is only so long and will escalate eventually. There will not be any lemons (it is rated T, after all), but their relationship will happen.  
Finally, I wanted to say that this chapter will be seeing Chloe far more out of character than in the rest of the story. She and Max will have their usual banter, but I wanted to portray a different side of Chloe due to Max's influence: a thoughtful side. Let me know what you think! Hope you all enjoy! :)

 _Chapter 5: Adventures of Two Pirates_

As Max and Chloe were finishing lunch together, Andrew came into the room with a clipboard and a big grin on his face.

"Hi Max! Chloe, I've come to flirt with your bae once more," Andrew said dramatically.

Chloe wasn't going to let that slide, "You say anything remotely suggestive and I'll ensure that you're never able to have children." It was amazing how she could make you fear for your life while you still know she's kidding…right?

"Sorry Max, I guess we don't have your BFF's blessing," Andrew sighed with disappointment. Max laughed at his antics and Andrew smiled inwardly. That was how he liked to see his patients.

"I came to let you know that your medical team agrees that you can be discharged. You'll need a follow-up in two weeks which you can have done at the nurse's office at Blackwell, or here if you so choose. Just make sure you don't do any major stretches or heavy lifting during that time period. If the wound reopens or turns a strange color, visit the nurse pronto! Otherwise, you should be just fine. Does that all make sense to you?" Andrew asked in full nurse mode. He loved to make his patients laugh, but it was also his job to make sure his patients understood anything of a medical nature.

"Yeah, I get it Andrew. No stretches or heavy lifting for two weeks. Check with the nurse after that time period. Anything weird happens to it, see the nurse right away," Max said with a smile.

"You got it Max," Andrew grinned. "This is your discharge paperwork. Once you've finished it, just call me or have your protector bring it to me."

"I'll make sure that you remain unable to pass your cooties to her," Chloe retorted.

Andrew made a show of snapping his fingers like he had been found out, smiled, and left the two young women alone again.

Max and Chloe joked around about Andrew's antics as Max worked through the paperwork. Both of them agreed that he was harmless and absolutely hilarious. However, Max continued to be confused by why Chloe called her 'bae', but decided to let it hang for now lest the two of them be interrupted a second time.

True to her word, Chloe brought the signed papers back to the nurse's station. She came back with a huge smile on her face.

"You're free to go Max!" she stated excitedly.

Chloe helped Max out of bed as she walked around for the first time in about four days. She was a bit unsteady on her feet, but Chloe remained by her side for her to lean on, and eventually she was walking more or less normally, with Chloe acting more as a steadying hand than as a crutch. Chloe waited while Max changed into casual clothes before the two of them left her room. As they walked past the nurse's station, a familiar face waited for them.

"Ugh, we had to run into _you_ again, didn't we?!" Chloe exclaimed.

"You should have expected this Chloe," Andrew teased. "Of course I had to see my favorite patient before she left here."

Max smiled, walked over to Andrew, and gave him a hug. "Thank you for taking care of me Andrew," she said softly. "After Chloe, you were probably the biggest help I had while I was here."

"I figured I'd lose to your BFF," Andrew smiled, "but coming in second place isn't bad at all. You make sure to take care of Chloe _and_ yourself now, okay?"

With that, Chloe practically pulled Max over to the elevators. The two of them waved to Andrew before the doors closed and parted them from view.

About five minutes later, Max and Chloe had gotten out of the hospital, into her truck, and off the hospital grounds.

"Hella yes! This is going to be just like things used to be, except now I can drive!" Chloe exclaimed.

Max couldn't keep the smile off of her face either. It was nice to hang out with Chloe again in a far more pleasant environment than the hospital.

"Where to, First Mate Max?" asked Chloe, going into pirate mode already.

"First, I need to go back to Blackwell. I need to change clothes and take a shower. After that, we can go to your place and chill if you want," Max replied, thinking things aloud.

"Sounds like as good a plan as any," Chloe said, turning toward the school where their whole reunion had been set into motion.

Max and Chloe talked about their plans on the way back to Blackwell Academy. Max would take a shower and change clothes. Then the two of them would go back to Chloe's place and chill until late afternoon. Then Chloe would drive Max back to Blackwell since she wanted to resume classes the following day. Chloe agreed to that on the condition that they hung out again after her classes the day afterwards. Max laughed and said that she could live with those arrangements.

Chloe decided to accompany Max and would chill in her dorm room while she showered. On their walk, Chloe seemed strangely…pensive. It was as if she was thinking about something but wasn't sure about it yet. Chloe was the kind of person to say whatever was on her mind unless it was something she wasn't sure about. She wanted to be sure of herself before saying anything concrete. It was as if…she were trying to make a decision in her head. Naturally, Max was curious as they entered the girls' dorm building.

"Chloe, you've been awfully quiet ever since we got here. What's on your mind?"

"…There's something I'm thinking about doing, Max. The only thing is I don't know if I want to go through with it," Chloe replied, still obviously thinking about it.

The two of them reached Max's room and entered. The room was just the way she left it except for one thing. It was clear that someone had been watching over her plant, Lisa, because the soil was damp. It was obvious that someone had been taking care of it in her absence. She knew that Chloe had been in the hospital the whole time she had been, so it wouldn't have been her. Max resolved to ask Kate about it later.

"Chloe, I've rarely seen you this deep in thought. Is there something serious on your mind?" Max asked again, sounding concerned.

Chloe picked up on her concern right away. "Nothing like we've gone through in the past few days, First Mate Max." She allowed herself a brief smile, bringing a matching one to Max's face before she turned serious again. "It's more that there's something in _my_ life that I want to fix, but I'm not sure if I can bring myself to do it. I think it would be a good thing, but I'm not sure if I can handle it. Why don't you go and take your shower and I'll tell you about it once I give it some more thought?"

"Alright, I can live with that," Max ended her questioning, but she walked over to Chloe and took her hand. "However, I want you to remember something." In response to Chloe's questioning glance, Max smiled and said, "I will always be here for you, Chloe."

With that, she gave Chloe a hug, which Chloe returned strongly. With a parting smile, Max walked over to the shower room that the girls in the dorm used.

As Max showered, she realized that it was a rare moment where she had time for herself. She reflected on the events of the past few days.

'In only a few days, I have managed to save a life and find justice for many people. How in the heck did I manage to do that? I never would have thought that I could do something like that in less than a week.' She shook her head. If she had been able to tell herself all this last week, she would have referred herself to a psychologist.

Her thoughts then drifted to Chloe. Her thoughts were at first those of concern over what her friend was so pensive about. However, Chloe had promised to talk about it with her when she finished her shower, so she put the thoughts aside for the moment.

'When we were kids, Chloe was more mischievous than I was, but she was never as affectionate as she is now. Is it just because I saved her from being killed or is it something deeper than that? She seems to be very considerate of my feelings and thoughts and she hasn't spewed much bad language at all. I suppose events like this can change a person, but I've only just re-entered her life. I won't deny that I've enjoyed the affection though.'

Max smiled and felt a warm feeling rush through her body as she thought of the close hugs and other forms of close contact the two have had since their reunion. Holding hands, Chloe rarely was leaving her side, being able to communicate feelings and intention through glances and touches, and a mending of their friendship in spite of the years in which they've been apart. Not to mention just how close they've managed to become in the past day or two. It felt like they were closer than they had ever been before.

Max was shocked with all the thoughts that she was having. Chloe was slowly becoming more and more important to her. I mean, very few people would jump in front of a loaded gun to protect someone. Heck, she wasn't able to do it the 'first time' herself. Only through a second chance had she somehow summoned the courage to dive in front of the bullet that could have easily killed Chloe. She was lucky to be alive herself. Chloe had become paramount in her life.

Right now, she had to focus on washing up before she turned into a prune, and figure out what's eating at Chloe. She could explore her feelings and musings later on. For the foreseeable future, she wouldn't change anything about their close and lovely friendship.

She shampooed her hair and rinsed herself once more. Feeling clean, she shut off the water, patted herself down with a towel, and put on fresh clothes. The shower had done her a world of good. She felt clean, relaxed, and her mind was clear. It was as if all her confusion, doubt, and regrets had gone down the drain along with the dirt, sweat, and God only knows what else that she had washed off. She smiled, and set off to find her Capitan again.

It was as if Max hadn't even left yet as she re-entered the room. Chloe was in the same position as Max had left her when she had left to shower. The only difference was that music was playing from the small stereo she kept in her room. Chloe had decided to keep it to a low roar, but the music seemed to be soothing to her, and that was good enough for Max. Most of her dorm mates were in class right now anyway.

"Chloe?" Her voice seemed to drift right over her friend, who continued sitting as if nothing in the room had changed. It was as if she was in a trance. It wasn't until Max sat down on the bed next to her that she blinked and noticed that Max had re-entered the room.

"Whoa Max! When did you become a ninja?" Chloe gasped.

"What, you never noticed before?" Max teased.

Chloe laughed before her face turned serious again. "Max, I know that you don't know much about what happened after my Dad passed away because you had to leave to. I know that it wasn't your fault, and I don't blame you for it. I was angry for a while because I thought, 'How could my father abandon me?' I know that he didn't mean to, but I was so angry that I wasn't able to see reason. When my Mom found someone new to marry, I just couldn't take it. It took me a long time to forgive her for doing that; I saw it as a betrayal to my father and I. Also, I…I never really accepted David into my life. I want to try and fix things up because I realize that all he wants is to support my Mom and I, and he really wants everyone to be safe. He may be a little paranoid about it, but I think that he is willing to be more reasonable if I talk to him rationally instead of just yelling at him. I…I don't think I can accept having another father figure in my life, but I feel that I can accept David if I think of him more as a mentor than a father. Things would be a lot easier at my house for everyone if I got along with everyone, and that includes David."

She looked up at Max with wary eyes, "Max, I don't know if I can do this. It's very easy for me to reject someone in my life and move on but…it's a lot harder to allow someone back into my life. You were easy because while I was hurt by you, I never really gave up on you. It was more like I was resigned to the fact that you were gone rather than angry. Then you return to my life in the most miraculous way ever, so we had a real solid reconnection right away. I want to accept David, but I don't know if I can move past everything that has already happened."

Max put her arm around Chloe's shoulders and Chloe fell into the embrace immediately. Max whispered, "Chloe, you will not have to deal with this alone. I'm going to be beside you every step of the way, and you can rely on me to support you and help you stay calm through a discussion. Since you helped David when he took care of me, I'm pretty sure that he is willing to be reasonable about this, and he's probably more than willing to patch things up with you." She looked right into Chloe's eyes and said, "I know that you can do this."

Chloe looked back into Max's eyes and Max saw the passing emotions: fear, confidence, relief, doubt, and…longing? Before Max could ponder it more, it was gone, and Chloe looked more determined than ever to do this.

"Okay, let's do this Max. Together," Chloe said.

"Together," Max replied, smiling slightly.

The two friends walked out of Max's room and started walking down the hall toward the exit. As they were walking, one of the rooms next to them opened and out walked Kate Marsh. Max turned to greet her friend, and was surprised to see that Kate's eyes looked red and puffy, as if she had been crying recently. It looked like she was putting up a strong front, but something clearly was not right in her world.

Max immediately ran over to her friend, "Kate! Are you alright?"

Kate gave Max a small smile, "I'm fine. Max, I'm glad to see you're out of the hospital."

"I just got out a while ago. Thank you so much for visiting me while I was in the hospital. Chloe told me that you stopped by, and that means a lot to me. By the way, someone has been taking care of Lisa? Did you take care of her while I was away?"

Kate nodded her assent, "I knew that she is important to you Max, so I wanted to make sure she was well cared for in your absence. It wasn't any trouble, since she was already in the sunlight. She just needed some water every now and then."

Max smiled, gratitude clearly showing in her expression, "Thank you so much Kate. It was nice that people cared enough to visit me, and especially nice to see that my plant was taken care of as well."

Kate smiled a real smile this time, "Anytime, Max. I'm glad I was able to help you out. You've been a great friend to me, so it was the least I could do."

Max pulled her friend into a hug, "I would do the same for you Kate. I would take care of Alice and watch over your room like a ninja."

Max tried to pull off acting like a ninja, which left Kate giggling.

"Seriously though, are you alright? You look like something has been bothering you," Max pressed.

Kate's eyes flashed with panic before she put on a small smile, "Yeah, I'm alright Max. I was up late last night studying for a science exam tomorrow, but aside from being tired, I'm okay."

Max knew that Kate was fabricating a story, but she didn't want to pressure the poor girl. "Okay Kate, I hope you are able to sleep better tonight. I know that you'll do well on the exam."  
Relief was clearly evident on Kate's face, worried that Max was going to call her bluff.

"However, if you ever want to talk to me, for whatever reason, you know that I'm always willing to listen to you and give you some support, alright?"

Kate nodded, her eyes widening at Max's words. She could tell that Max wasn't lying. She was being sincere.

Max walked back over to Chloe and the pair continued walking down the hall. They were able to push through the double doors to go outside when suddenly, they heard Kate's voice.

"Max, wait!" she called.

Max turned around to see Kate still standing where Max had left her. She ran over to Max, gave her a hug and whispered, "Can you meet in my room tomorrow night? Can we have a tea date, for you and I?"

Max whispered back, "Yes Kate! I will be there. You can count on me!"

Kate pulled away from Max, smiled a bright Kate Marsh smile, and ran back to her room. Max turned to Chloe, who smiled back at her, and the two walked outside to face their next objective.

The drive to Chloe's house was very quiet. Max could tell that Chloe was psyching herself up for the conversation that was fast approaching, and Max hoped that she could help Chloe control her temper enough so that the discussion could be reasonable instead of escalating into a shouting match. Chloe was a tough person to stop once she got going, but Max could tell that Chloe had been affected in more than one way by her cataclysmic re-entry into her life. She seemed more thoughtful and careful about what she said. She was considerate in her words and actions. If Chloe had gone full rebel, Max would likely hardly recognize her old friend.

Max moved her arm over to Chloe's shoulder and squeezed it. When Chloe turned her head to face Max, she gave her a small smile of support. Chloe smiled back, and gave her a small nod. They were going to handle this together.

Chloe had a plan for how she _wanted_ to talk to her stepfather, but she also knew that she couldn't plan everything because the conversation was only going to be partially her. To be honest, Chloe was nervous. She wanted things to work out, but this was different than pushing someone out of her life. This was about _accepting_ someone in her life, someone she had already pushed away before, and rather vehemently at that. She needed to put her best self forward, and that meant she would be vulnerable, and that terrified her. Then she looked at Max, and that was all she needed to take a deep breath and find her determination all over again. She knew that Max wasn't going to abandon her for this, and that thought was comforting.

When they arrived, Max smiled at the house that she was so used to. Even after the five years where she's been gone, it was amazing to see that some things hadn't changed. Even the inside was virtually the same, with some minor changes here and there.

Chloe stopped outside of one particular door. "Okay, knowing David, he is likely in the garage here. He spends quite a bit of time tinkering with tools, and making sure his weapons are working properly. I want to see if he'll agree to talk to me in the family room, and then from there…I'm not sure yet, but I know that it takes two people to have a conversation. If I start to raise my voice or anything, just squeeze my hand. I know that you won't be able to contribute much to the conversation, but knowing that you have my back is enough for me."

"I do Chloe, always," was Max's reply.

Chloe gave her a tight hug, took a deep breath, and walked into the garage.

"Um, hey David," she started.

David stopped what he was doing and turned around slowly, his eyes wary. He looked for a moment like he wanted to scold Chloe for coming into the garage without knocking, but stopped when he saw Max at the garage door.

He settled on a polite response, "What can I do for you Chloe?"

Chloe gulped down her fears and said, "I was wondering if you would be willing to talk to me…in the family room?"

Clearly, this was a question that David was not prepared for. He was prepared for yelling, demanding, or insults, but Chloe's unsure tone and the fact that she stated it as a question showed that this was an equal discussion for both parties.

His expression did not change, but his tone of voice did. He spoke gentler, "Okay Chloe. Head over to the family room and I will be with you and Max in a moment."

Chloe turned to leave the garage, but at the door she paused and over her shoulder called out, "Thank you David."

Max and Chloe pulled up two armchairs in the family room, leaving two sitting across from them. Max reached over and took Chloe's hand in hers. She could feel Chloe shaking, and so she gave her hand a squeeze in support. She whispered, "You're not alone Chloe."

Chloe took a deep breath and gave Max a small smile. She kept their hands intertwined.

After a minute or two, David came out of the garage and stopped in the kitchen before coming to the family room and joining the two. He set a plate on the table between them.

"Your mother cooked these before she went to work today. I figured we could get a head-start on them while having our…discussion." He turned his gaze to Max, "Max, I'm very glad to see that you up and well again. I thank you for saving Chloe, and I'm glad that you survived as well."

Max nodded to them, "Thank you for keeping me stable, Mr. Madsen."

He nodded, and then returned his gaze to Chloe. "What did you want to talk to me about, Chloe?"

Chloe took a deep breath and said, "David, I…I need to…apologize for the way that I have been treating you for the past few years. I've treated you like a villain for trying to take my father's place when you have wanted is what is…what you believe is best for my mother and me."

Max watched David during this exchange, and she saw his eyes widen in shock during this admission. Apparently he had never seen this coming.

Chloe continued, "I was very upset over my father's death. I was very angry and I didn't know how to channel that anger, so I lashed out everywhere. Rachel helped me find an outlet for that energy, but it made me become more rebellious than anything else. After Max jumped back into my life here, she…she opened my eyes to a lot of the answers that I was looking for. While she was in the hospital bed, I realized where my life had veered off to and I am trying to get back on the right path. I'm still a bit of a rebel because I don't give a damn about what other people think of me. I have strong convictions, and I may curse and be vulgar every now and then, but I think those are much milder than going crazy with hair dye, smoking weed, or sneaking out at night. Max has promised that she isn't leaving me again, so I'm trying to amend my reputation and…and mend my ties with others. So, I'm sorry and I hope that we can start over."

Afterwards, Chloe fell silent. This silence had very noticeable tension in it. Chloe looked like someone awaiting a sentence from the judge. Max squeezed her hand in support.

For his part, David look astonished at Chloe's rant. Before him was a girl who had never apologized for anything she had ever said or done to him, speaking very politely and basically asking for forgiveness for all she had done.

He said, "Chloe, I'll admit that I've been very disappointed with how you've treated me in the past…"

Chloe froze solid, but kept Max's hand in hers; it was her only lifeline at this point.

"…but I'm willing to start over because I see that you are being sincere and I want the two of us to get along. It likely will not happen overnight, but I will try harder to understand you and support you in your endeavors as long as you are willing to speak civilly about matters."

"David, I can never have another father in my life because my Dad meant the world to me. However, I would really like a mentor in my life, someone who could give me guidance and advice. I know that you deserve respect, and I will give that to you, but I don't want you to expect to have a daughter who loves you as if she were your own."

David nodded, "I understand that losing your father hurt you badly. Those are the kinds of wounds that never fully heal," he trailed off for a moment, "but I would like us to get along. I will give you the space that you need, and you can judge how much space you need."

Both teens saw the between the lines message in that: David wasn't opposed to Chloe seeing him as a mentor, but he was open to seeing Chloe closer to a step-daughter if she wanted that in the future.

Chloe, Max, and David all stood up. David extended his hand to Chloe, and she raised her head to look at him. She looked a little frightened, but she wasn't shaking anymore. Max squeezed her hand in support, and she looked at Chloe, giving her a "You can do this!" expression. Chloe smiled, looked at David, and shook his hand with her own.

Both teens smiled, and David was wearing a small smile of his own.

Chloe and Max hung out in Chloe's room until Joyce came home later, and Chloe greeted her mother with a hug, as did Max.

"It's so wonderful to have you back with us Max. You certainly popped up in the most unexpected way, but both David and I are so grateful for what you did, and we're relieved that you were okay as well. We'll never be able to repay you for what you did, but you are always welcome around here," Joyce told Max, after giving her a tremendous hug.

"I'm happy to be back, Joyce," Max replied, "And I would never let anything happen to Chloe. She's still my best friend after all."

Max smiled at Chloe, who returned the smile.

"Okay sap, let's get you back to Blackwell," Chloe said, rolling her eyes in mock exasperation.

The teens walked out to Chloe's truck and headed out to Blackwell. David and Joyce watched them drive off from the front door.

"Chloe apologized to me today," David said to his wife.

"She did WHAT?" Joyce exclaimed. "Wow, I'm so proud of her for doing that."

David nodded, putting an arm around her shoulders, "She said she wants to get along better with me, and I'm definitely not going to argue with that. She says she isn't ready to accept me as a stepfather, but she wants someone who can give her guidance. While I would like to have someone like Chloe as a stepdaughter, I'm going to take what I can get."

Joyce turned to face him, "I'm sure she'll warm up to you eventually. You and Chloe both have a tough, outer shell, but I know that you both have very loving hearts."

"And the good sense to appreciate amazing cooking as well," David said, smirking.

Joyce raised her eyebrow, "David, did you get into the cookies _again_?"

David gave her a cheeky grin as he ran off, his wife giving chase, hand raised as if brandishing a spatula. For all he knew, she could have been.

As Chloe drove Max back to Blackwell, the atmosphere was a lot lighter, and Chloe started getting back to her lighter self again. They joked and talked like they used to, with Chloe calling Max a hipster and Max never having an adequate comeback for it ('friend of a hipster'? Really?).

Max noticed that she liked the person that Chloe was becoming. Max had never seen her rebel phase with Rachel, and perhaps she never would have become one if Max hadn't left, but she was definitely doing her best to only retain the positive or harmless qualities of that phase. Max admitted that the slang was kind of cool. If she could say 'Wowser' then Chloe could definitely add 'hella' to anything she wanted. Chloe was also returning a lot of her affection, and this was something that Max hadn't expected, but was happy about nonetheless. She liked the warm feeling that it gave her whenever she hugged her best friend.

They pulled up to the school, and Max leaned over to give her friend a hug before heading to her dorm for the evening. She hugged Chloe, with Chloe's head on top of hers. She returned the hug to Max, but Max swore that she felt lips kiss her hair. Chloe's expression when Max pulled away did not betray anything either.

"See you on Friday, hipster," Chloe joked.

"Later dork," Max taunted back.

"I am not a dork!" Chloe called as she drove away.

As Chloe drove away, Max never saw the cheeky grin she wore after getting away with kissing Max's hair.

As Max lay in bed that evening, she went over the events of that day in her mind. In one day, she had been discharged from the hospital, cleaned up, set up a tea date with Kate, and helped Chloe reconcile with her stepfather.

'God, I did a heck of a lot today, without really doing that much.' Max thought to herself.

However, she found that above all, she loved the time she spent with Chloe most of all. Admittedly, that was most of the day, but Max was happy that even when dealing with heavy stuff like having her reconcile with her stepfather, Chloe allowed Max to be there to support her.

The only part that confused Max was when Chloe dropped her off. Did Chloe kiss her, or was that only her imagination? Max could easily chalk it up to either, to be honest. But why would Chloe kiss her? Max didn't object to it, but she was confused? Did Chloe harbor feelings for _her_? Max had questioned her sexuality while she had been in Seattle and concluded that at the very least she was attracted to girls and guys. She was not going to assign a label to herself, especially when she wasn't even sure. How did she feel about Chloe?

Max thought about all the times she had spent with Chloe, even making cookies back in their childhood. She thought about how impossible it was to make any friends who she bonded with as well as Chloe, how easily they reconnected after five years. She reveled in the hugs from her blue-haired friend and the warmth she felt from holding Chloe's hand. She loved spending time with Chloe, and life was certainly more interesting when they were together. They complimented each other just like a Captain and a First Mate. If they dated, Max admitted there wouldn't be much difference to how they normally spent time together; there would just be more hand-holding and hugging in public, and more cuddling and kissing in private.

Her thoughts were inconclusive as she finally fell asleep, but a certain blue-haired person was commonplace in her dreams that night.


	6. Chapter 6: Stay By My Side

Disclaimer: The _Life is Strange_ franchise and its affiliated characters belong to Square Enix. All original characters and their identities are used with the express permission of their real-life counterparts.

This was one of my favorite chapters to write. Kate Marsh is my favorite character from _Life is Strange_. This chapter focuses more on Kate and Alyssa, but Chloe does make it in. As always, thank you to everyone who has been taking time to read this story and who has left a review, is following the story, or has favorited it. It encourages me so much! Enjoy! :)

 _Chapter 6: Stay by My Side_

A certain blonde-haired girl woke up in her dorm at Blackwell on Thursday morning with a sense of dread in her heart. She had slept well, but she still felt exhausted. Well, maybe drained would be a better choice of words. With slow, fragile movements, she sat up and pulled herself out of bed, preparing for the new day ahead.

Kate Marsh was set in her beliefs. She was abstinent, didn't want to take drugs, and had a strong belief in God. Her parents had been strong Christians, and she liked the beliefs that she had learned growing up. However, unlike her mother, she was very relaxed in how she viewed others who did things that she would not do. For example, she had no problem with people who slept around, who took drugs, or who didn't believe in God. She had no problem with any sexual orientation either, even though her mother had tried to make Kate believe that homosexuality was a sin. She had told her mother that Jesus wanted people to love their neighbors as themselves, so she would treat people as she wanted to be treated. Her mother could find no counterargument, but did not speak to her daughter for several days.

On another note, Kate's father was very proud of the young woman she was becoming. He liked that Kate was finding her own niche in life and not blindly follow everything that he and her mother taught her growing up. He himself had no objections to any sexual orientation himself, but his wife had very different views. Nevertheless, he made sure that he was available when her mother refused to speak to her for nearly a week.

Kate was open-minded about everyone she met, but she was running out of patience with those who were not being nearly as kind to her. About two weeks after she started coming to Blackwell, she was forced to see some vulgar message scribbled on the white board outside of her room. When they had first started, she would erase them and replace them with some positive or encouraging message. However, after a while, she just left it alone. The message would be different every morning before she left for classes. She had no idea who was doing it or why. She had tried getting up early to catch the culprit, but even then the message had already been changed. Whoever was changing it was awake long after Kate went to sleep.

The harassment did not end there either. She would find post-its on her desk or would be thrown at her during class. Worst of all, it happened in multiple classes. She couldn't trace it to one particular person, which could only mean that multiple people were in on it. She was having trouble focusing on classwork or tests and she would cry in her dorm room and fall asleep, meaning that she had already missed a few homework assignments as well. She wanted to talk to the teachers about it, but was afraid that her harassment would continue if she complained about it. She didn't want to give anyone the satisfaction of knowing that they were hurting her.

Kate shook her head to rid herself of these thoughts. She took comfort in the scripture of the Bible, in which she had marked verses such as Philippians 4:5-7 which reads:

Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Reading passages like this helped her, but the dread always came back the next morning, and it was confirmed by looking just outside her bedroom.

At least she had a tea date with Max later that day, and the thought brought a fond smile to her face. Max was one person who she knew was a kind and loving spirit, and she was happy to have someone who made her time at Blackwell a little easier to tolerate. No matter how bad Kate's days became, Max always knew how to bring a smile to her face. Perhaps not all of her days were good, but at least there was some good in each day. Max had surprised her by so easily reading her emotions the other day and told Kate that she could always talk to her. She called her bluff and told Kate that she would support her and listen to anything she needed to talk about without once being too obvious or calling her out in any way. She was thankful for Max's tact. All she had to do now was get through the day before her…

Max was still trying to sort out her feelings for Chloe the next morning. She finally settled on the fact that she was definitely attracted to her best friend at the very least. It gave her a warm, comfortable feeling in her stomach and gave her something to smile about all morning. She may not be certain as to whether or not she was in love with Chloe, but it helped ease her racing thoughts at the very least.

She was smiling until she passed by Kate's dorm room where someone had written…some very nasty remarks about Kate specifically. Max erased them (she didn't care if anyone was watching) and wrote a very positive message to Kate. She hoped that her friend saw it before coming into class. Satisfied with that change, she left the dorm building on the way to her science class.

Max saw Kate later on in the photography class they shared. It was now taught by a woman who used to be a model and who was very good at teaching about proper lighting and its effect on the mood that a picture would give off. They focused more on people than objects in class, and it gave Max some really good ideas on how to improve the pictures that she took of others. Who knows if it would ever help her selfies though?

When Kate had walked in, Max's jaw dropped. Max thought that Kate looked tired yesterday, but it was nothing compared to how she looked this afternoon. She looked despondent, and even more so upon reaching her desk. She was quiet for the entire class. Max kept a close eye on her throughout class, her concern for the girl growing more than yesterday. She had looked tired yesterday, but today her entire face was radiating a very deep, sad gloom, not even trying to mask itself with the beautiful Kate Marsh smile.

About halfway through class, Max saw something fly through her peripheral vision. It was small, barely noticeable, and Max lost sight of it until she saw Kate wince. Whatever it was, it had hit Kate! Her concern growing, she watched and saw it happen again. Max looked at the pathway from where it came and saw who else but Victoria Chase, calmly sitting and looking at the teacher while holding something discreetly in her lap, underneath her desk, hidden out of sight from Kate. Max's heart went out to Kate. No one should be hurting anybody, but Kate was so kind to everyone that she was the last person to deserve harassment like that.

Kate took off as soon as the bell rang, while Max went over to her desk and was stunned at what she saw. On the floor, was a post-it note with more harassment toward Kate, as if the insults she received on her white board in the morning weren't bad enough. Something shiny caught her eye, and she leaned down to pick it up. Sitting there in her hand was a small, lead ball, smaller than a grain of rice; it was a pellet, the ones that were used in pellet rifles. Max stared at it in disbelief. Spitballs were immature and gross, but pellets could hurt if they were fired fast enough, which was probably Victoria's intention. There were at least five of them on the ground, which likely meant that Kate could barely focus in class. She removed the post-it and the lead pellets from the floor before heading off to her next class. She and Kate were going to have a lot to talk about.

Science was Max's last class for the day, and Ms. Grant was giving the class a science test. Bless her heart, she knew that Max had been hospitalized and gave her until next week to take the test. She let her go after giving her a packet with the notes from the days she had missed. Max couldn't be more relieved. After the incident with Kate, she wasn't sure she could wait much longer. She couldn't imagine Kate taking any more abuse than she already had. She headed back to her dorm room and started rummaging through her closet. She wasn't sure if it would fix everything, but at least it would give her friend some hope.

Kate Marsh was _not_ having a good day. Not only were unknown people putting post-it notes on her desk and firing objects at her that really stung, but the teachers were still oblivious and, what's worse, she had terrible cramps because her period had started that day. And she was out of heating pads! Pain compounded by pain. She could barely focus in class, and her anxiety was not helping matters. The teacher in her last class let her leave early when she noticed how Kate looked. The poor girl barely got back to her dorm room, wanting to collapse in pain on her bed, when she saw a ladder blocking her doorway. Well, that was certainly new.

In front of her doorway was a ladder with about ten steps, ascending to about ten feet in the air. The janitor, Samuel, was holding the ladder with both hands. This mystery was certainly complex. On the ladder was none other than Max, who was currently hammering nails above her door while holding something large in between her shoulder and her arm. Kate could not possibly imagine what Max was doing. When Max finished hammering the last nail in, she took the large white board she was holding, hung it up on the nails, and started climbing down.

Kate gasped. The new white board above her room clearly read, "Kate's Room" with all sorts of hearts, peace signs, and flowers drawn all over it in various colors. It was beautiful, and best of all, no vulgar messages were written on it either. Kate's heart fluttered in her chest, and her temporarily forgotten as she gazed upon it.

"Do you like it, Kate?" Max asked her.

"Like it? _Like_ it? Max, I love it!" Kate cried, throwing her arms around her friend, who returned her embrace.

"I wanted you to have something positive near your door so that you would always be able to come back to a comforting place. I hated seeing all of those messages on your white board, so I wanted you to have something better. I also put a large white board over my room so that you weren't the only one," Max told her softly.

Kate could feel tears come to her eyes. No one had ever thought enough to do something about what she was dealing with, and to be so creative as to not even get the teachers involved. It was truly an ingenious idea.

"Thank you for your help Samuel. I'll bring the ladder back to your closet as soon as we put the last touch on," Max told the janitor.

"Not a problem, young Max," Samuel smiled. "Ms. Marsh, you have a mighty good friend there as well. Let me know if you ever need anything."

Kate smiled through her tears and thanked Samuel as well, before turning back to Max.

"He is right, I do have an amazing friend," Kate told her, smiling.

"Well, I try to do what I can," Max stammered, blushing. It was adorable.

"Wait, what did you mean by finishing touches?" Kate asked.

"Well, I wanted to include something underneath "Kate's Room", like a quote or something. I wanted you to pick the quote, whether it is a Bible verse or just something that makes you happy," Max said, smiling.

Kate smiled too, a genuine smile, and said, "I know exactly what it should say."

About fifteen minutes later, the pair had finished their work. Kate had drawn some more flowers and hearts (Max admitted her artwork was better) and even added in a deer, much to Max's surprise and amusement. She gave Max a purple dry-erase marker while she dictated what the quote would read. Now, underneath "Kate's Room" it read:

"Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, and sings the tune without words, and never stops at all." ~Emily Dickinson

"You know, that is a really wonderful quote," Max remarked.

"It has been my favorite quote for years," Kate said. "I put it on my smaller white board when I started here, but, well…we both know how that went."

Max gave her a hug. "Now you won't have to worry about that anymore, because you always have something to look forward to. Also, this is a dry eraser for you as well. Before you leave your room, you can erase the smaller white board without having to read what it says."

Kate's eyes widened. Why hadn't she thought of that? If the messages were going to be bad anyway, why not just erase them? Perhaps she wanted to believe that one day, someone would write something nice on her white board?

Max was about to bring the ladder back when Kate got an idea…

Twenty minutes later, they were admiring the artwork they had done together on Max's own overhead white board. In addition to flowers and hearts, Kate had added in a bunny in the bottom left corner. The color scheme was different from her room, but had the same warm feeling. Max's quote was also different:

"Promise me you'll always remember: you're braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. And even if we're apart, I'll always be with you." ~A.A. Milne

Kate was initially surprised with Max's quote, but Max said that it was something that she thought of often when she was in Seattle and away from her best friend. Max blushed when she mentioned her friend, but Kate thought it was cute. Finally, the handiwork of the two friends was complete. Max told Kate to start making the tea while she brought the ladder back before their dorm-mates came back from class. Kate nodded in assent before practically skipping back to her room in pure joy.

Max was walking out of the girls' dorm, carefully balancing the ladder and making sure no one was going to get hit with it. She used the grass so that if anyone was coming, they could use the path. She was about halfway to Samuel's closet when a familiar purple-haired girl came running down the path towards the dorm.

It was Alyssa, who looked terrified. Clearly, she had been running for some time, as her face was all red and she looked as if she was too tired to keep going for much longer. When she saw Max, she had a pleading look in her eye.

"Max, help me! There are two guys after me!" she yelled.

The words weren't even out of her mouth when the two aforementioned men came around the corner and took off running toward Alyssa. They were large guys, most likely jocks, and they looked like they were having fun chasing Alyssa. As they came charging, Alyssa made to get away. They were going to pass by Max in the next few seconds or so.

Without pausing to think about the consequences, Max grabbed the ladder with both hands and swung it as hard as she could at the jocks. The metal ladder hit them both in the solar plexus and knocked the wind and the momentum right out of them, bringing them to the ground.

Alyssa looked on in shock as the boys fell to the ground. Perhaps she was shocked that her nightmare was over? Or maybe it was that Max had used a ladder as a means of saving her? Max didn't have the time to consider it as a shrill whistle broke the sudden silence.

"Max! What were you thinking just now?" said the unmistakable voice of David Madsen from behind her.

"These boys were chasing Alyssa so I did what I could to stop them. I was only trying to protect her!" Max replied breathlessly; lying was not going to help her here.

"Ms. Anderson, do you know why these two men were chasing you?" he questioned.

"While I was walking down by the field, these guys were verbally harassing me, making snide comments about me. I ignored them and kept walking while reading my book. Then they came toward me, saying that they were going to make sure I learned to 'respect my superiors'. After that, I dropped my book and ran all the way here and I told Max what was going on. Then the men came around and Max swung the ladder at them to stop them," Alyssa explained.

David looked from the boys who were attempting to stagger to their feet, to Max, to Alyssa, and then seemed to come to a decision.

"Ms. Anderson, you will escort Ms. Caulfield to Principal Wells' office while I do the same with these two gentlemen."

The words were hardly out of his mouth before Max felt very lightheaded. She couldn't figure out why, but then she slumped to the ground, unable to further maintain her balance. Alyssa cried out as Max slumped to the ground, and David, seeing a dark spot forming on Max's shirt, immediately pulled out his communicator and said he had a student with a possible Class 2 hemorrhage out in front of the girl's dorm.

Kate was getting out the tea set for her and Max when she heard a smash outside. She placed the tea set on the table and left her dorm to investigate the noise. No sooner had the door to her room closed when she heard a girl's voice yell outside the dorm.

"MAX!"

Kate's blood ran cold and she broke into a run. She pushed through the door to the outside of the building and gasped as she saw Max, sitting on the ground, with Alyssa and David Madsen knelt next to her. David was on his communicator talking to someone, while Alyssa kneeled next to her friend, keeping Max talking. She ran over and knelt next to her.

"Alyssa! What happened?! Max, are you alright?" she breathed, breathless with anxiety over her friend.

"Kate…" Max sounded as if she was trying to hold it together, even though she felt a bit light-headed. She was holding her stomach with both her hands. "I swung the ladder to stop those two thugs over there from chasing Alyssa across campus. I stopped them, and Mr. Madsen came over here to find out what happened, but I…I think I strained myself too much."

At this point, it became apparent that Max's shirt was becoming darker and darker with fluid.

It turned out that David had been in contact with the school nurse and the emergency dispatcher in Arcadia Bay. The school nurse came running out with a large medical kit. She noticed that Max's sutures had reopened, and that she had been bleeding slowly but steadily, causing her to nearly lose consciousness. She had Kate and Alyssa back up slightly so that she could work to close the sutures and stop the bleeding. She elevated Max's torso and applied a sterile bandage to slow the bleeding.

"You're going to be alright, Ms. Caulfield. Just stay with me and keep talking, alright?"

"I'll do my best, Ms. Laura…"

The paramedics arrived soon after, and Max was put on a gurney and taken into the ambulance. Luckily there were enough supplies on the ambulance to stabilize her, and she was allowed to stay in the school infirmary overnight instead of going to the hospital. Nurse Laura promised to take good care of her and make sure that she didn't perform any more 'stupidly heroic stunts' for a while. Max smiled weakly, along with Kate and Alyssa.

Nurse Laura allowed Kate and Alyssa to stay and visit on Max's request. The two of them were visibly shaken, but they worked at calming themselves as they each held one of Max's hands and continued talking to Max. Since Max was holding a conversation with them, they were able to get over being shaken up rather quickly.

"Max, why in the love of God would you attempt to _swing_ a _steel_ ladder at two men when you had only recently recovered from a _gunshot_ wound?" Alyssa said, exasperated. She felt a little guilty that she had called out to Max for help when she had only recently recovered from a gunshot wound, but never thought Max would have done something that reckless.

"You need to take care of yourself too Max," Kate chided, "We don't want to lose you."

Max turned her head towards Alyssa and gently squeezed her hand, "It was worth it to save you, Alyssa. Nobody has the right to bully you, or anyone else for that matter. I swung that ladder without even thinking about what might happen, and I have no regrets. I'm glad that you are safe Alyssa."

She then turned to Kate, "I'm really happy that you care so much Kate, and for still being my friend even if I do stupid things sometimes." She squeezed Kate's hand, and Kate brought her other hand over, so that she held Max's in both of her hands.

About ten minutes had gone by when a door was loudly opened and someone called out, "Max! Where are you?" Max rolled her eyes but smiled; she knew who had come.

Nurse Laura reprimanded the loud-mouthed woman before asking Max if she wanted to see a young woman with blue hair.

"I've asked her to remain quiet, but she is quite persistent about seeing you."

Max laughed and said to let her in.

Not five seconds later, the partition moved and Chloe came in, the expression on her face one of shocked disbelief and amusement mixed together.  
"Max, really? I leave you out of my sight for a day and now you are off saving someone else's life?! Do you have a savior complex or something?" Chloe asked, her boisterous voice sounding as if it were projected through a megaphone in the small room.

"Chloe, please keep it down. It may be only me in the infirmary, but I can hear you just fine," Max winced as her ears rang.

Kate and Alyssa helped Max fill Chloe in on what had transpired during the afternoon, from what Max had done to Kate's room to what had caused Max to be in the infirmary. Chloe managed to refrain from commenting until she had been brought up to speed on everything.

"Max, as much as you may be hella awesome, you're putting other superheroines to shame here by first saving me, and now Alyssa." She paused and turned to Kate, "Kate, you better not get be in danger during the next 24 hours or I'm sure Max will try to save you too."

Kate smiled at Max, "She already has with what she did for me this afternoon."

Chloe smiled and rolled her eyes in mock-exasperation, "Okay Super Max, you've helped people out 3-0 in the past week, and so far you've been very lucky. Can you at least promise me to not try and save anyone else before I come back tomorrow and help you walk…no, I can't even trust you to be on your own two feet without doing something stupid… _carry_ you out of the infirmary?"

Max smirked, "But what if something happens to Miss Laura?"

Chloe raised her eyebrows, "Do I need to sleep outside the infirmary to make sure that nothing else happens between now and tomorrow?"

Max laughed and said she would do her best, but made no promises. Chloe stood up with a mischievous twinkle in her eye, and left disappeared out of the partition for a moment. When she came back, she was grinning.

"Nurse Laura says that we can take turns keeping an eye on you overnight and into tomorrow, so you don't do anything stupid. I told her I was concerned about you being too reckless to be trusted alone."

All of the girls dissolved into giggles.

Chloe was serious about this reverse-bodyguard scenario however. Kate would take the first shift until 11 p.m., Alyssa would take over for Kate until 3 a.m. and then Chloe would cover until morning. With that, she went to sleep in the next cot, and asked Alyssa to wake her before she left.

Max enjoyed talking to Kate and Alyssa for a couple hours before Kate left to go to bed. She promised to return in the morning before classes started. Soon after Kate left, Max fell asleep while Alyssa was talking to her. Alyssa reflected on all that Max had done for her, and vowed to try and be a better friend to Max. Clearly the girls were quite nice to each other, but Alyssa didn't hang out with Max as often as she liked, even if they had an interest in the same nerdy stuff.

By the time Chloe took over, it was well into the night. But, having just napped for a few hours, she was game to watch over Max. She had been starting to view her friend differently. Max had come crashing back into her life in the most dramatic way imaginable, and was proving to be a force to be reckoned with. She was quickly realizing how much Max meant to her now that the two of them were back in action again. Their friendship was more affectionate than ever, Max had become a very good role model and source of support for her, and Chloe was quickly realizing that the time she enjoyed most was when she was with Max. Hell, life was always better when she was with Max. They had proven that they could have their silly times as well as their serious ones, and yet they would support each other through anything. As soon as David had told her that Max was injured, she practically flew out of the house and drove up to Blackwell as fast as she could. She had probably gone about 20-25 miles over the speed limit, but she couldn't care less when it came to Max. She always got a very warm feeling in her chest when it came to Max, and she was determined to make sure that nothing took Max away from her again.

Chloe surprised herself with the fervor of her thoughts, but this time didn't push them away. She had to be honest with herself and her emotions. This was especially true if it had to do with Max. It wasn't perfectly clear to Chloe exactly _what_ she was feeling, but it was a lot stronger than the boundaries of friendship could stretch to cover. With the exception of Max's time in Seattle, the two of them had always been friends and knew everything about each other. That still held true even to this day. However, friendship did not seem quite powerful enough to describe how Chloe felt about Max.

As dawn came, Chloe's mind was filled with thoughts about the chestnut-haired girl sleeping in front of her.


	7. Chapter 7: I'll Always Have Your Back

Dicsclaimer: The _Life is_ _Strange_ franchise and its affiliated characters belong to Square Enix. All original characters and their identities are used with the express permission of their real-life counterparts.

I am so grateful for everyone who has let me know what they think about the story so far, or who has followed or favorited the story. It's very encouraging. Today we are wrapping up the subsections regarding Kate and Alyssa. Next chapter will have more than a huge focus on Max and Chloe. I hope you enjoy! :)

 _Chapter 7: I'll Always Have Your Back_

Max awoke to the sensation of someone holding her hand. Without opening her eyes, she tried to guess who it was. When she remembered what she had done to deserve being in a reverse-bodyguard position, she smiled as she knew who was holding her hand.

"Good morning Chloe," she said softly.

She opened her eyes to her blue-haired best friend smiling down at her, her face soft and full of affection. Max started to realize that it was a look that was only for her; it was a face that she had not shown to anyone else, even when she was injured. Max reveled in the warm feeling it gave her to know that this was a look that only she would ever see.

Chloe gently moved her hand to Max's cheek. Max's eyes widened, but she smiled and relaxed.

"So Super Max, are you ready for me to carry you out of here today?" Chloe grinned.

Max sighed theatrically, "I was hoping you forget about that and let me walk out of here with my dignity intact."

"You lost that privilege when you landed in here in the first place, Max. Besides, it's nice to have another chance to embarrass you."

Max groaned, but inwardly didn't mind. Her grousing was more for form's sake than anything else.

"By the way, both Kate and Principal Wells came by earlier. Kate said that she hoped to see you at her dorm later if you felt alright. I think she mentioned that you two had a tea date to make up for. Principal Wells said that he hoped to see you and Alyssa at his office this afternoon as long as you are feeling up for it. He wants you to get better before rushing over to see him."

Max sat up and did a few _small_ stretches to fully wake up, and then asked Chloe to have Nurse Laura come and check to see if she was clear to leave.

Within a minute, Nurse Laura looked Max over and said that she saw no reason why Max couldn't leave this morning, but strongly cautioned against doing anything strenuous, including swinging ladders to save people. Max noticed how Nurse Laura and Chloe exchanged a smile at this, and Max rolled her eyes, realizing that Chloe was never going to let this go. Chloe did carry her out of the infirmary, but let her down when they reached the Principal's office. She told Max that she wanted her to rest today, and they would hang out the following day.

Principal Wells was not an intimidating man. He was a stern man to be sure, but he was not intimidating unless you got on his bad side. However, he met Max with a fair gaze and asked her to explain the situation to him. After Max had explained what she knew and Alyssa filled in the details, Principal Wells asked the gentlemen to explain themselves, and they tried to weave a convincing lie, but each of them kept correcting the other. Of course, Principal Wells saw right through this. He told Max that he would send her off with a warning not to use excessive force on students unless the situation demanded it (of course, everyone knew that the situation had caused for some form of action), and that all the parties involved had been excused from class for that day, including Kate and Alyssa. He also asked David to escort the two women back to their dorm.

Upon arriving back at the dorm and David wishing the two girls a pleasant rest of their day, Alyssa picked up Max in an absolutely huge, but very gentle hug.

"Max, I still can't believe you stopped them. That was amazing, reckless, and required some guts too. It was also pretty funny watching those jocks just stop in their tracks" she beamed.

"No problem Alyssa; you were in danger and I tried to do what I could to help. I kind of acted on instinct, but I'm glad it worked out for the best," Max replied. Then her face clouded over in confusion, "But what were those jocks taunting you about in the first place? All you were doing was walking by the field; you weren't provoking anyone."

Alyssa's entire face darkened, "My weight. Those jerks were taunting me about my weight. When I started running from them, one of them said, "Heh, maybe us chasing you will get you to lose a couple of pounds.""

"That's terrible!" Max gasped.

"I've gotten used to being made fun of Max," Alyssa replied sorrowfully. "It's bothersome, but I've learned to roll with the punches. It's the first time I've ever been chased for it though."

With that, Alyssa went to go in her room.

"Hold on Alyssa!" Max called.

"What?"

"I just wanted to tell you that I think you are amazing just as you are. I'm happy to be your friend, and whenever we talk you always get me to laugh, no matter how bad my day might be. Your body doesn't change who you are," Max said gently.

"I appreciate you trying to cheer me up Max," Alyssa replied with a bittersweet smile, "I just wished more people were as accepting as you are."

With that, she closed the door to her room, and Max was left standing in the hall. She was just about to head back to Kate's room when she remembered something, and headed back out of the dormitory.

Ten minutes later, she had picked up a book that had been dropped near the field and brought it back to her room. She grabbed a post-it note and wrote a short message to her friend:

"Dear Alyssa,

I wanted you to know that I consider you to be one of the few friends that I have at Blackwell. You rock at video games, you are a genius when it comes to literature, and you always know how to brighten the days of others. However, what I like the most about you is that you aren't afraid to be yourself and it inspires me to be proud of whom I am each day. Thank you for just being you.

Love, your friend, Max.

P.S. If you ever want to talk or chill, you know where my room is! :)"

After she had affixed the note to Alyssa's book, she grabbed another post-it and took it with her to Kate's room.

"Which is what brings me here," Max explained to Kate, now that she was up to speed. "I thought it would be a good idea if you wrote something encouraging to Alyssa as well. Perhaps between the two of us we can cheer her up."

Kate agreed with the idea wholeheartedly, and added her own message to Alyssa, which read:

"To my lovely friend Alyssa,

It's nice to have someone at Blackwell who really cares. I will always admire you for how you stood up to the bullies who considered it fun to pick on me, for being accepting of someone regardless of what they believe in, and for coming up with creative ways to sleep even if the Vortex Party was right above me. Thank you for being a friend of the friendless. I consider you to be a blessing in my life.

With love, Kate."

Both of their notes affixed, Max and Kate decided to leave the book at Alyssa's door. She would find it the next time she left her room.

"I'm really grateful for what you did for me, Max," Kate spoke once she and Max had sat down for tea in her room that evening. Kate had convinced Max to spend the remainder of the day relaxing and studying.

Max smiled at her friend, "I was more than happy to do it Kate. When I saw you in class yesterday, looking as downcast as you were, that was the final straw for me. I knew I had to do something to see that beautiful Kate Marsh smile again."

Kate smiled gently, a gift far greater than any words. "At least now I know that I have something to look forward to whenever I come back to my room and I know that nobody will go after it."

Max shared a cheeky grin with Kate. Putting a white board _above_ the door meant that anyone who wanted to deface it would have to get permission to utilize a ladder and then bring it into the girls' dorm and set it up in front of Kate's room. Not only would that require a lot of effort and a believable explanation for use of the ladder (which Max _had_ procured before using it), but people would likely _notice_ as well, and whoever was doing this to Kate would likely not want to draw attention to him or herself.

"Kate, I just want you to know that I think you are one of the coolest girls here at Blackwell. I like how you have such strong commitments to your beliefs, and yet still have such an open-mind. You have a good thing to say about almost everyone, and your smiles are always genuine. I'm really happy that I have a friend like you here."

Kate looked dumbfounded, but then shot a beaming smile at Max in gratitude, "Thanks Max. It really means a lot to hear you say that." Her expression turned downcast, "I was really thinking of transferring out of Blackwell before yesterday. It was getting too much to bear to have to see the defamation every morning and to be harassed in class all the time. At least now I know that my room will remain a refuge."

Inwardly, Max was very proud of what she had done that Kate _didn't_ know about. She had taken the pellets and post-its and told the teacher what was going on. She told her about what Victoria had done, and the teacher promised to keep a close eye on Victoria during class. If anything else happened, Victoria was going to be in serious trouble. The best part is that Victoria would be caught in the act, not tattled on.

"Kate, I was wondering if I could have your opinion on something," Max asked, sipping her tea (chamomile cinnamon) to soothe her nerves.

"You can ask me anything, Max," Kate said with a smile.

"What do you think of same-sex relationships?" Max asked nervously.

Kate took a sip of her tea as well (peppermint, to help alleviate depression or elevate mood) before replying, "I personally think that since God told us to love each other, any sort of romantic relationship between people is fine as long as it is entered into voluntarily. People cannot control who they are attracted to, so I think that if they find someone who makes them happy, then they should see if the other person feels the same way."

Max's relief was palpable, "I think that's a very mature way of looking at it Kate. A lot of people are divided on that issue nowadays."

Kate sighed, "It's sad really. People who make a religious argument against it are misinterpreting the Bible and not understanding the context that it is in. Plus, it's no one's business but the couple who is involved."

Max took a deep breath before speaking, "I think I may be in love with someone."

Kate's eyes sparkled. She loved to be let in on secrets. "Is that right? Who is the lucky person?"

Max allowed herself a smile, "My best friend Chloe."

Kate let out a rare, mischievous smile, "I thought so."

Good thing Max hadn't been drinking at that moment, or she would have ended up spitting it out in surprise, "Wait, what? Is it that obvious?"

Kate took hold of Max's hand, "When I saw you in the hospital, I could see how devoted Chloe was to you. She always held your hand and she had this look in her eye. It was this gentle look, as if she was looking after someone very special to her. I could tell you meant a lot to Chloe.

"I saw you return that devotion to her when I saw the two of you the other day. You were both on one heck of a mission. You always kept close to her, and I could tell that she was just as important to you as you are to her."

Max's jaw dropped. She didn't think that Kate would have picked up on that kind of thing, but then again, Kate was much more attuned to others emotionally than she was.

Regaining her composure, Max said, "I…I've been thinking about it a lot since yesterday. I kissed Chloe on the cheek when I was in the hospital. It was more of a spur-of-the-moment thing, but it still felt right. Also, I think Chloe kissed my hair when she dropped me off the other day. Whenever I thought about that, it made me really happy and gave me a warm feeling. I started to realize that she is the most important person in my life. I've never been closer to anyone than to her. Even though I was gone for years, all my friendships paled in comparison to the one she and I have. She's also really attractive too, so that's bonus points."

Kate laughed, "I'm sure you two would make an excellent couple Max. You back each other up really well, and you have a history together, which usually makes relationships a lot stronger. Go for it, and tell me all about it afterwards," she ended with a wink. "I will be here for you no matter what happens."

For the rest of the evening, Kate and Max joked, hugged, and just enjoyed themselves, even jamming out together with Kate on her violin and Max on her guitar. They played "A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri and "The One Who Knows" by Dar Williams, as well as some of Kate's favorite hymns, which Max enjoyed the melodies to. When the time came for the two to part, Kate pulled Max into a huge hug.

"Max…before you did this for me, I was really depressed. My anxiety got the better of me every morning and even getting through the day was a struggle. Now I think that I can look to each day with a smile. Thank you for being there for me."

"You're welcome, Kate. I'm always here for you. You can talk to me about anything, whenever you need to. My door is always open for you," Max said gently. "If you ever need anything, you just let me know, okay?"

Kate had a cheeky grin on her face, "In that case, do you happen to have any heating pads? I'm having really bad cramps right now."

The two shared a look that only girls would recognize.

Max laughed, "Yeah, I have some in my room. You just wait here, and I'll get you one."

It was a much more comfortable Kate and a much calmer Max who went to sleep that evening, each of them looking to the following day with more hope in their hearts.


	8. Chapter 8: A Greater Destiny

Disclaimer: The _Life is Strange_ franchise and its affiliated characters belong to Square Enix. All original characters and their identities are used with the express permission of their real-life counterparts.

I will let this chapter speak for itself. Again, thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, or followed so far, and I will be bringing you the last chapter very soon! On with the story; hope you enjoy it! :)

 _Chapter 8: A Greater Destiny_

On Friday morning, Max awoke feeling well-rested. She had been able to help one of her best friends in need, and she now knew what she wanted to go regarding Chloe.

It didn't make it any easier though.

Chloe was always one whose emotions were difficult to read. Unlike Max, who wore her emotions on her sleeve, Chloe always focused her feelings inward. Those feelings would be expressed differently, but they were never discussed outright. She was worried that Chloe would run away if Max confessed to her, even if Chloe felt the same way.

Max wasn't even sure Chloe _did_ feel the same way. She wagered a guess that Chloe had kissed her hair that day, but Chloe had such a good poker face that it was impossible to tell for sure. What if Chloe hadn't done that and Max's confession made things awkward between them? Max wanted their relationship to grow, not get demolished, especially after they had reestablished it again so recently.

As a result, Max's mind was clearly distracted that day. She was only barely able to answer the teacher's questions when directly asked, and the lectures completely flew over her head. She became more nervous throughout the day as her encounter with Chloe drew closer and closer. Hopefully she could borrow the notes from Kate or Alyssa later.

Oh, Alyssa…

Max smiled. That was one thing about today that was absolutely wonderful. Before she had left her room that morning, she found a post-it note from Alyssa stuck to her door. It read:

"Dear Max,

Thank you so much for the kind notes that you and Kate wrote for me. They definitely give me hope and help me realize that there is more to life than the shape of our bodies. I did some research last night, and found that there are plenty of plus-sized models such as Liris Crosse and Sunday Omony who are completely comfortable in their own bodies and are happy with the way they look. It won't be easy for me to accept myself, but I will work on it one day at a time. At least I know I have two people who like me as I am. Thank you so much Max. And also, thank you for returning the book. I was up late finishing it.

Love,

Alyssa"

Max found Kate before she left the dorm and found that Alyssa had slipped a similar note underneath her door (to prevent anyone from defacing or stealing it). When she saw Alyssa later in class, she had flashed a thumbs-up, and Alyssa smiled back at her. Max was very happy about how that chain of events had panned out.

'Now I just have to see if the day between Chloe and I pans out just as well,' Max thought.

What made Max so nervous was trying to figure out how to confess to Chloe. Her friend had definitely changed in the past five years, so it was difficult to figure out how she would react. Should she work her way up to it or should she be really spontaneous about it? It was hard to tell with Chloe, especially since that woman had such a good poker face.

After classes had let out, Max went back to her dorm to shower, change her clothes, pack an overnight bag, and generally be a nervous wreck. She texted Chloe that she was out of class and Chloe immediately let her know that she was on the way to pick her up.

As Max set off to where Chloe would pick her up, she saw Kate and waved to her. Kate came right up to her and said, "Are you hanging out with Chloe today?" She had a knowing smile on her face.

Max smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head, "Yeah. Kate…I'm going to confess to her today."

Kate looked ecstatic about the news.

Max spilled all her worries, "Kate, what am I going to do? Chloe and I have both changed since I've left. I don't know how I should do this, or if Chloe will like what I'm wearing or…" she was silenced by a single finger to her lips.

Kate smiled, "Max, you have nothing to worry about. If you and Chloe were so different, you wouldn't have recovered your friendship so easily. You and Chloe may be more mature and experienced now, but that is to be expected after five years. It takes two people to build a relationship Max, and the most important thing is to _just be yourself_. If you can do that, then your confession does not have to be perfect, it just has to be natural."

Max was stunned. Despite never being in a relationship, Kate was really wise about matters like this. As she took another heavy breath in and out, she felt a good chunk of the anxiety leave her. She now had more of a plan for what to do.

Max gave Kate a huge hug, which was returned with equal fervor, "Thank you so much Kate. I'll let you know how everything goes when I come back."

With that, Max headed to the doors of the dormitory and walked out. Kate watched her as she left, striding with just a little bit more confidence.

Kate said a silent prayer for her friend and smiled, 'You'll be fine, Max. I know you will.'

Max went out to the front gates of Blackwell and Chloe was just pulling up.

"Hey Max! What's up?" Chloe greeted cheerfully.

"Hey Chloe," Max said, and the two friends high-fived.

"So, where do you wanna go?" Chloe asked.

The question surprised Max. She had thought that she and Chloe were going to just hang out at Chloe's house. However, the absence of a concrete venue sent Max's mind into overdrive.

'Okay, if I'm going to confess to Chloe. I want to do things right. For me, I would get dinner first.'

"Let's go to the Two Whales Diner then," Max offered.

"Hella yes! Time to get some food in my system. The bill is on you Max," Chloe joked.

'That works just fine for me,' Max smiled to herself.

The drive to the diner was relatively quiet. Chloe would fill the silence by playing music, which was just fine for both of them. It was hard to have a meaningful conversation while someone was driving anyway. Max's mind was racing with thoughts, mostly full of self-doubt and negativity, but she kept on trying to push them out and focus on what she wanted to do.

She was so absorbed in her own thoughts that she didn't even realize when they pulled up to the diner.

"All right! Let's get some food," Max had to smile at the sheer energy and carefree nature of her best friend. No matter what was going on in Max's life, Chloe always had a way of pulling her out of her funk.

They went into the diner and were promptly served by Joyce, who also seemed very happy to see them. Perhaps Chloe's sudden 180 was making life easier for everyone, Joyce included.

As if on cue, Chloe said, "Things have been getting better at home. David and I are on better terms than before and he's mentioned that I can come to him for anything. I'm starting to see what my Mom sees in him. He always seems to be able to spare a minute to talk, even if he's in the middle of something. I guess he tends to be quieter than most because of his own history of being a war vet. I'm definitely not ready to see him as a step-father, but we aren't having such vehement disagreements anymore. I've decided to go back to my normal hair color, so I'm going to let the blue dye naturally fade away. For you and me, it will be just like it used to be." Chloe's voice took on a wistful tone at the end, as if reminiscing about a memory from all those years ago.

Max smiled, "Are you still up for taking that photo of the two of us at the lighthouse?"

Chloe's eyes lit up. "Hella yes! Let's do that right after we finish dinner! We'll have enough sunlight to take a really good shot, and it'll be…"

"…the new introductory photo to our album," Max finished with a grin. Chloe's beaming smile was proof enough that Max had finished her sentence for her.

They ate an excellent dinner, and Max picked up the bill, as she promised.

As they headed back to Chloe's truck, Max asked Chloe if she happened to have the boom box that was powered by batteries or electricity. Chloe responded by saying that it was back at her house, and Max asked if they could grab it from her house before going to the lighthouse.

After a brief stop at Chloe's house and a cordial hello to David, the two were on their way to the lighthouse again. Unbeknownst to Chloe, Max had made a mix CD early that morning to play for Chloe, and she had one of the albums they had made so long ago in her overnight bag. Max wanted to show Chloe just how much their friendship had meant to her over the years.

Once the pair had arrived at the lighthouse, Max got out of the truck with her bag and walked over to the lighthouse and looked out over the bay. The sun was just beginning to set, and it was, in Max's opinions, one of the most beautiful parts of the day. The lighthouse was on a ledge overlooking the bay, and the town was spread out underneath the lighthouse to the south. The sun's rays stretched over Arcadia Bay, casting long shadows behind the buildings. The ledge was the most beautiful location to view the sunset, as there was nothing else between you and the bay.

Max felt Chloe come up behind her and drape an arm over her shoulder. She was carrying the battery-operated boom box in her other hand. They stood there in silence for a moment before Chloe asked, "Did you miss this view Max?"

There was no malice or bitterness in her voice anymore, just genuine curiosity.

Max nodded, "I would always miss this place. Whenever I saw the sunset, looked through the photo albums, or even just thought about Arcadia Bay, I would always think about how the sunset never looked as beautiful as it does here." Max grabbed Chloe's hand, and their held each other's hands. Max couldn't get over the warm feeling that flooded through her, even at the casual contact. Not long ago, it would have just been a gesture of friendship, but Max now saw it as a powerful sign of support.

Max sat down on the bench next to the lighthouse and brought the photo album to Chloe's attention.

"Dude, is that our first _ever_ photo album?" Chloe was stunned at seeing it, but couldn't keep the smile off her face.

Max smiled. The photo album was covered with blues and purples after Max and Chloe decided to color the cover. In the center was a close-up shot of Max and Chloe smiling. To that day, it was still one of the best photos they had ever taken. It was covered in small stickers: science fiction ones from Max and superhero ones from Chloe. Even though they had three albums, the first one was still Max's favorite.

Max opened the photo album to a random page and the two started going through the pictures together. There were pictures from sleepovers, birthday parties, playdates, 'adventures' they had gone on, and some really well-taken shots of the two of them by Chloe's father, William.

"Man, this is unreal!" Chloe sighed. "All these photos…it feels like we took them yesterday, and yet it has been freaking years! We definitely need a new album with plenty of new pictures."

"You're lucky I still have my Polaroid, Chloe," Max giggled at Chloe's enthusiasm.

"Let's take one already! We're at the lighthouse; let's take one together. Remember, we have to as a last farewell to my blue hair."

Max took her trusty Polaroid out of her bag and the two sat close together on the bench. From here, the sun was in front of them, so the lighting was excellent. The two smiled big, Chloe from her enthusiasm and Max from the nostalgic feeling of taking photos with her long-time friend, and snapped a picture.

It was perfect, capturing their smiles and heads perfectly. It was almost as if they had taken the front cover and applied an age progression to it. Both of them look at the photo and at each other, and smiled at just how nostalgic it seemed. Max put it in the old photo album for safekeeping until they got a new photo album to start. That photo would likely be the new cover.

Max turned to Chloe. It was now or never, she thought to herself.

"Chloe, can I talk to you about something?" she asked softly.

"Dude, you can talk to me about anything you want. You know that, right?" Chloe voice started as a joke, but when she saw Max's expression, it turned softer.

Max's face looked _nervous_. She looked unsure, but her balled-up fists were clear signs of her determination. She was worried about something, but Chloe couldn't imagine what. Max took a few deep breaths before continuing.

"I'm just afraid of having you judge me for something. Oh God, I'm not sure I can do this," Max sighed, her resolve clearly wavering. Her face was already in her hands.

Chloe wasn't sure what was distressing her friend, but clearly it was important stuff. She held Max in her arms gently.

"Max, I would never judge you for anything you told me. You may have been gone for five years, but you're still my best friend. We're just as close now as we were back then, perhaps even more so now than before. You can tell me anything and I won't hold it against you."

Max took a few steadying breaths, strengthened her resolve, and then cried more gently into Chloe's shoulder. Chloe gently kissed Max's forehead, and that simple action helped Max calm down enough to speak again. The truth was Max was terrified of Chloe's reaction. She couldn't afford to lose the friendship that she had just been able to rebuild. However, she also knew that she couldn't simply leave things as they were. Max had a feeling that she and Chloe could be more, but someone had to say something.

Max took a shaky breath and looked down for a moment, "When I was with Rachel…we talked about the way events went, but we also talked about other possibilities and how things could have progressed." She hadn't told Chloe about the other possible timelines because she was afraid of scaring Chloe after they had just reunited, but she figured it was time to come clean. Max didn't want any secrets between them if she was going to attempt a relationship together.

"Rachel told me how the…universe or whatever, thought that I was going to take a different path. In that path, you and I went through an entourage of terrifying events. However, at the end, the use of my powers would have caused a massive superstorm to form. I would have to choose between sacrificing the town of Arcadia Bay…or you."

Chloe's eyes widened as the implications of that statement dawned on her. She knew that Max would never willingly give her up (the past few days were living proof of that), but that meant everyone in Arcadia Bay would have felt the full fury of that storm. That meant that everyone in Blackwell, the people of the town and, she gasped, her mother and step-father would likely not come out of that storm unscathed, if they even survived.

Max was sobbing at this point, and Chloe pulled her in to comfort her. Chloe thought that thinking about this was hard, and she could not even imagine how it made Max feel. Chloe had the hypothetical idea in her head, but Max literally had almost crossed into that possibility. However, Chloe also knew that Max hadn't chosen that route, and was immensely grateful for that.

Max was trying to compose herself, but it wasn't easy. She hadn't thought it was going to be this difficult, but actually having Chloe next to her made her realize how close she came to losing her. She couldn't bear the thought of losing the one she loved because of her own actions. Chloe held her in her arms, gently rubbing her back with one hand and holding Max's head against her shoulder with the other.

"Max, if anything, you gave me a far greater destiny than I could have ever conceived of. You solved the mystery of Rachel's disappearance, took a shadow of my former self and brought me back to it, you helped mend the ties between my family and I, and let's not forget," she lifted Max's face to look at her, "you saved me as well."

Max held Chloe's gaze and took a deep, shuddering breath. Her nerves ignited and she started shaking. If anything, Chloe only held her tighter. Eventually, she spoke, not caring in her voice was raspy or stuttering. She knew that it didn't have to be perfect, it only had to be true. She was about as raw as she could be right now, so it seemed like the perfect moment.

"C-Chloe, it has always been about you. You've always been one of the m-most important people in my life. We…we were always together growing up, and you made my childhood more fun than I ever could have imagined on my own." She smiled slightly as she thought of the photo album, and based on Chloe's smile, she was thinking the same thing.

Max continued crying, but her voice was stronger, "When I moved to Seattle, I was devastated. Suddenly the source of all my happiness was…missing. I tried to be strong for my family, but I was broken inside. Most nights, I couldn't believe that we were separated. It wasn't easy for me to make friends, and most of the time I compared them to you, and none of them could hold a candle. Some were good, but they were never _as_ good. I…I had to accept that we were separated over time, but it didn't make things easier, and I never forgot about you."

Chloe's eyes shot open in surprise. Max valued their friendship even more than she thought. If only she could get Max to see things the same way that she did…

"When I was at Blackwell and I first saw you get…shot, I gained the ability to time travel, and I only used the power once. It gave me a chance to try again, and I knew that I wasn't going to let you get hit…no matter at what cost it came. So I made sure that you weren't harmed. It was about you, Chloe. It has always been about you, and it always will be. Like I said before, I am not leaving without you again." Max paused, looked deep into Chloe's hopeful, compassionate eyes and finished.

"Chloe, I love you."

There was a pregnant silence following this statement. Chloe was absolutely floored. Max returned her feelings? Granted, Chloe had never voiced them, but Max felt the same way about her? Her mind could barely process it. The idea of Max returning her feelings was something that she had only ever fantasized about; she never thought that it would actually come to be. She was elated, but her absolute awe kept her from replying right away.

Max was another story. This silence was turning her into more and more of a basket case by the second. Her mind was racing, trying to make sense of it, but only coming up with negative reasoning.

'Oh my goodness, did I just ruin everything between us?'

'Will she never want to speak to me again?'

'Did I just lose my best friend forever?'

While her mind was going frantic, she only barely registered her face being turned from down in shame to up to look at Chloe's face. She couldn't process the smallest smile forming on Chloe's face before she looked right into Max's eyes and replied,

"Max, I love you too."

Max's mind froze in its tracks. Wait, Chloe accepted her feelings? She was returning them? Was this even possible? Her mind had stopped thinking up negative scenarios and was now frantically trying to backpedal. The most intelligent thing she could think of was

"Wait, what did you say?"

Chloe laughed gently, knowing not to ruin the moment, but to appease her friend's (now her lover's) fear. She loved how her friend could have the courage to confess her feelings, but not the self-worth to believe that her feelings would be reciprocated.

"I said I love you too Max," she said, smiling gently. Brushing Max's hair out of the way of her eyes, she continued, "Max, you have always been the most important person in my life. You've been there through the ups and downs. I was devastated when you left, but that was because of what I was going through. I would never blame you for that. I just buried my feelings even deeper in my grief, knowing that they would never be acknowledged. All of a sudden you came back into my life like a superhero and literally save my life. I couldn't keep my feelings bottled though," she had the good nature to look sheepish here, "I kinda kissed your hair when I dropped you off at Blackwell on Wednesday."

Chloe's confession had given Max's mind the time to jumpstart again, and she was now slightly more coherent and able to respond, "Yeah, I realized that. It started making me wonder about how I felt about you." Max smiled slightly, "You always have to make the first move, don't you?"

Chloe laughed, thankful that the heaviest of moments was over. She always preferred lighter moments anyway, and Max knew that about her. "Of course I do. If I waited for you to make a move, it would have taken almost a year!" she joked.

"Hey, who was the first one to start spilling out their feelings here?" Max countered with a smirk.

"Touché," replied Chloe, grinning.

Max noticed she was still in Chloe's arms, and wrapped herself further in her lover's embrace, wrapping her arms around Chloe and giving her a hug tighter than any she had given before. She had finally found love, and was determined to make sure it never escaped her. Chloe, for her part, noticed the intensity of Max's hug and returned the same affection. Both of them were surprised to find tears on Max's shoulder as they separated.

Max softly wiped the tears from Chloe's eyes. It must have been hard on her to be without Max for so long and now realizing that the feelings she had kept hidden so deeply were now being returned. Max was a little misty-eyed herself because Chloe had returned her feelings, and she couldn't be happier. She knew Chloe felt the same way.

Chloe had not wanted to cry, but her body had different ideas. She was absolutely elated, and now that her feelings had been returned, she truly believed that nothing else could bring her down. Knowing that she couldn't stop it from happening, she let herself cry, knowing that they were true tears of happiness.

Max held Chloe's head against her shoulder and gently rubbed her back as she cried. She wanted her best friend and lover to know that she was there for her. She knew that words spoke volumes to her friend. "Chloe, I love you. I'm never leaving your side again."

She felt Chloe's arms go around her and hold her close, and Max admired how Chloe wasn't playing her tears off as a joke or trying to hold them all in. She suspected that she needed this and would give her lover as much time as she needed.

At long last, they had both calmed down enough and were relieved and elated at the realization that they shared feelings for each other. Now the two of them were sitting next to each other, each one of them having one arm around the other.  
Max had given Chloe the mix CD, telling her that the CD had music on it that she wanted to share with Chloe if she had returned her feelings, so they were softly be serenaded by songs such as "Everything's Alright" and "White Blood". It was a hodgepodge of songs that Max liked, song that Chloe liked, and songs they both liked. It worked out pretty well.

The song "Obstacles" had just started playing when Max turned to her lover and asked, "Chloe, would you be my…girlfriend?"

Chloe smiled sweetly. She found it cute that Max was so shy in asking that question when she knew what the answer would be. "As long as you get to be _my_ girlfriend as well."

Max smiled timidly in response and laid her head on Chloe's shoulder. She had been such a mess and so worried, but everything had worked out in the end. It had been an upward battle to get to this point, but now the two of them had found love in each other, and they were determined to keep it. They both knew they wanted to go slowly, but they each knew that the other would not push them to do anything they weren't ready for.

Suddenly, Chloe had a flash of inspiration, "Hey Max! I've got an idea! Can you get out your camera?"

Confused, Max sat up and brought her trusty Polaroid out of her satchel. Chloe looked way too excited about this.

Chloe asked coyly, "How good are you at taking pictures without watching where the camera is pointing?"

Max was still oblivious as to where this was going but replied, "I think I could still aim pretty well, but I wouldn't make any guarantees about it."

Chloe figured that was good enough. She took Max's cheek in her hand and whispered, "I think I have a wonderful idea for another picture for our scrapbook." Max's eyes lit up as she realized where Chloe was going with this, and she smiled.

Max raised her camera with one hand, and took Chloe's cheek in her other, gazing deeply into her lover's ocean-blue eyes.

Chloe gently asked, "Is this alright with you, Max? I don't want to rush anything."

"I couldn't think of a better way to finish our day together," Max smiled.

Chloe returned that smile and gently brought her lips to meet Max's as Max's practiced hands took the first of many photos of two best friends who had become a couple.


	9. Chapter 9: A Final Choice

Disclaimer: The _Life is Strange_ franchise and its affiliated characters belong to Square Enix. All original characters and their identities are used with the express permission of their real-life counterparts.

Today is a bittersweet day. It's always nice to have a story come to its completion, but its also sad that the story has come to its end. I really enjoyed writing this story and watching the story unfold. It is nice when the story guides the author; it just leaves the author with a good feeling. I do have another story in mind, but it will take me a while to write it. Since Kate Marsh is my favorite character, it will undoubetdly involve her. Anyway, thank you to everyone who has given me feedback, favorited this story, or followed me on this journey. You are what keep my spirit encouraged! :)

I hope to see you all on other pages in the future and I wish you all the best. Keep reading, keep writing, and keep imagining! :)  
~Angel'sLove447, at home, March 11th, 2017

 _Chapter 9: A Final Choice_

The knowledge that Chloe and Max were going out as a couple was at first a well-kept secret. The first two people to know about it were Kate and Alyssa. Max trusted both of them and knew they wouldn't be judged for it. When the couple had told them, Kate had a knowing smile on the whole time, and Alyssa commented that Max had good taste. That was the night of the confession at the lighthouse.

Max told her parents next when they came to visit that weekend. Since Chloe was practically family, no one thought it strange that Chloe was with them the whole day as Max showed them around and introduced her parents to her friends. At the end of the day, Max brought her Mom and Dad back to her dorm and told them how she and Chloe were both going out. Max's father was ecstatic, and her Mom, although usually much calmer and more down-to-earth, couldn't keep the smile from her face either. Each of them hugged Max and Chloe and told them how they would always support them. They both knew how close Max and Chloe were, and the idea of them dating wasn't too farfetched for them. Kate and Alyssa had been on standby in case Max's parents hadn't been accepting, but when Max called them and they came over to Max's room, they only saw smiles on everyone's face.

Joyce and David had been next, about a week after Max met her parents, and it had been a bit of a closer call with them. Joyce was thrilled to see that the two of them were closer than ever, and had a twinkle in her eye as if she thought this could have happened. David was not as forthcoming at first however, and for a few minutes, it looked like everything that Chloe had worked to build up with her stepfather was going to come crashing down. However, with Max's gentle hand in her own and with a few deep breaths, Chloe calmed herself down and asked David to explain why he seemed to be opposed to it.

David explained that he had no problem with two women dating each other. He respected people's right to choose their partner in life. However, he was concerned about the amount of problems the two of them might go through because of other people's beliefs. Although two women could be legally married now, some people would deny them jobs, property, or even service because of it. However, he _did_ promise to help them both however he could. David received two big hugs that day, and he always remembered that day as the first day that his stepdaughter ever hugged him.

The word spread slowly through Blackwell Academy, as Max and Chloe gave Kate and Alyssa permission to tell people, as long as they were trustworthy. That rule was passed on, and slowly but surely, the idea that Max and Chloe were dating went from a far-fetched rumor, to a piece of scandalous gossip, to a well-established fact. The duo never attempted to hide their relationship, but they weren't kissing in full view of the commons either.

The relationship was accepted by most of the people at Blackwell Academy and throughout the town, but the pair did encounter their fair share of critics. Victoria threw insults at the two whenever she saw them together, but her plan to provoke Chloe never worked, as Max was always there to take her hand, although there had been a few close calls. Eventually, Victoria had mouthed off one too many times, and Principal Wells happened to be walking around the corner in that same moment. Victoria was suspended from Blackwell for a week, but she ended up being gone for about a month. The photography teacher had gone to Principal Wells regarding the abuse of her student Kate Marsh by Victoria as well, and she ended up being in a truckload of trouble. When she returned to Blackwell, she kept her remarks to herself. She still threw nasty glares at the pair, but they always greeted her with a smile. Kate also found that photography was a far lovelier class when lead pellets weren't being fired at her, and it encouraged her to take pictures to practice illustrating.

Another major critic of theirs was Nathan's father, Sean Prescott. Max and Chloe were on a date and were going to the Two Whales Diner for dinner. When they entered, they were immediately being screamed at and cursed out by this man. Now, Max's actions had only _in_ directly caused Nathan's arrest, but they had played a role. Max did not want anything to do with this man, but they just happened to be in the same place at the same time. Joyce led Max and Chloe out of the diner, but led them around the back and into the back of the diner where there was a table set up with candles. With a wink, she promised she would be back to take their order soon. Max was visibly shaken up by the incident, but Chloe was there for her as she cried, and Max took comfort in knowing that Chloe would never leave her.

Max felt so much better by the time they left the diner that Chloe had convinced her to foot the bill again.

By graduation, Max had decided that she was going to be studying photography professionally at the local university just outside of Arcadia Bay while Chloe worked diligently on getting her G.E.D. before studying Psychology. Four years later, on the night in which the two of them graduated, Max and Chloe returned to the lighthouse to realize just how far they had come together.

"It's been years since we reconnected, but I never would have hoped that we would be as close as we are now, Chloe," Max mused.

"Dude, I start tripping every time I try and put my head around it. I can hardly believe it myself. We've been through a lot in the past four years, but we've always had each other to rely on. It's a stark contrast to the dark years before that, huh?"

"Yeah, but we've made enough new memories to fill up our newest photo album," Max smiled as she brought the photo album out of her bag.

"Wait, it's finally full?! Oh my goodness, that is awesome!" Chloe cried out happily. The photo album they had started the night where they confessed to each other was finally full. It was larger than the previous ones they had filled. The album contained at least 700 pictures as opposed to the standard 100-300 that some albums held. The photo on the front cover was the picture of the two of them kissing during the sunset on that fortuitous evening.

"I still had my blue hair back then too," Chloe reminisced.

"Yeah, and right after graduation, your natural color started showing more prominently again," Max recalled.

By the time Chloe had gotten her G.E.D., her hair was back to its original blonde-brown color, although she kept in the same style (albeit it a little longer). Chloe found it weird at first, but Max had reassured her that it reminded her of the Chloe she knew as a kid, just more grown up, and Chloe grew to love her natural color because of Max's love of it.

"Our years in college passed by quicker than I thought they would," Chloe mused.

Max smirked, "Yeah, and we had a lot more free time together because I made you study!"

The two were lucky to have a lot more friends than enemies in college. Some of these friends were particularly intimidating, so they weren't bothered too much. With Max and Chloe, their greatest strength was each other. They worked off each other, covering for each other in areas they weren't as strong in. Their families were also great sources of support, and they were always grateful for that.

"Yeah. I easily got used to sleeping by your side Max," said Chloe gently, taking Max's hand and giving it a gentle squeeze which Max returned.

"You got used to a lot more than that," Max smirked, and Chloe grinned back.

The two girls stayed at Chloe's house most of the time because the university was easily within commuting distance. It started as sleeping in the same room, but it wasn't long before they slept in the same bed, and then that same bed with less clothing on. The two girls did explore the more physical side of their relationship as well, but they each respected the boundaries of the other. However, it would be enough to say they knew how to make the other person happy.

"Do you really like sleeping next to me Chloe?" Max asked innocuously.

Chloe raised an eyebrow, "Um, duh. You're my girlfriend Max, and being by you always makes me happy. We relied on each other all through college Max, and I slept better knowing that you would be next to me when I woke up."

Max looked at Chloe with an expression of utmost compassion and love. Her blue eyes were swimming with emotion, desire, and…nervousness?

"Chloe, I want you to know that I really enjoyed waking up with you every morning as well. You were always there to support me, and I had so much fun, even on the harder days with you around. However, I was wondering if you would be okay with a more…permanent arrangement?"

Chloe was confused for a moment before she began putting the pieces together. Her mind started to race and her hands began to sweat. "Max? Are you…?"

Max took both of Chloe's hands in hers and breathed heavily, "Chloe, I can safely say that my life is not the same without you in it. You are not only my lover but also my best friend, my partner in crime, my source of comfort on bad days, the person who shares in my joy on the good days, and my constant ray of sunshine. You make me smile, you make me laugh, you understand my emotional side, you know how to break the tension and talk things out, and I've come to love everything about you unconditionally. I always want you in my life not just today, or tomorrow, or a week from now. I want you in my life forever." Max got down on one knee in front of Chloe, keeping one hand in her own, and reached into her pocket to grab a jewelry box.

"Chloe Price, will you marry me?"

Chloe opened the box and gasped as a beautiful white gold ring with a small light-blue colored diamond came into view.

Chloe smiled as tears came streaming down her face, "Yes Max! A thousand times yes!"

Max's own tears washed down her face, but she took the ring and slid it onto Chloe's finger before Chloe lifted her into the air and twirled them around and then brought their lips together into a passionate, love-filled kiss. The two lovers embraced, silhouetted by the sunlight on the bay. Chloe grabbed the camera from Max's bag, and the two smiled as Chloe took the picture, the ring clearly visible to everyone. They didn't care about the visible tears; all they cared about was the moment they were enraptured in. There was much more hugging and kissing before they left the lighthouse that evening, and much more happened that night than the two of them ever cared to explain! (Use your imagination!)

A year later, Max stood in a beautiful dress in front of an altar. The dress was long and flowing, and tinted a light pink. There was a gentle veil covering her head, and she was elated that the day had finally come.

The same night that Max had proposed to Chloe, they told Joyce and David about it. The two were elated, and Joyce was very enthusiastic about planning the wedding with Chloe. David also had a few connections, and he did the best to plan an amazing wedding for his stepdaughter however he could. Max told her parents in person a few days later, and much of the same sentiments were expressed. The Caulfields had always been enamored with Chloe, so it seemed like a mere formality that she was becoming part of the family. However, Max's parents were just as eager to help plan, and this led Joyce and David to become good friends with Robyn and Clyde.

The guest list mainly consisted of their friends from Blackwell and the local university, as well as their extended family members. Obviously, Kate and Alyssa were coming, and Chloe had Alyssa be her bridesmaid while Kate was Max's. Clyde and David were ushers, and that meant that David was able to make sure that his stepdaughter's wedding was safe, as well as enjoyable. Robyn and Joyce made sure that everything was organized, from the reception to the clothing to the music, everything was as close to perfect as possible. Of course, they also cried and gushed over how beautiful their daughters were. Clyde and David had similar sentiments as well.

Max had requested that the front pew on both sides of the church be left empty in respect for those who had gone before, such as Rachel Amber and William Price. Chloe had given her an extra big hug for that idea. Max would swear to Chloe later on that she actually saw William and Rachel at least twice during the ceremony, and Chloe believed her 100%. Joyce believed her too, saying that of course William would show up to his daughter and unofficial daughter's wedding day.

When the entrance music started and Chloe walked down the aisle, Max felt her heart catch in her throat. Chloe's dress was very similar to her own, except tinted a light blue. Chloe had a radiant smile on her face, and all of her attention was directed toward her partner, clad in her pink-tinted white dress. They were so absorbed in each other that they went through the service without really thinking, until they came to the vows. Both Chloe and Max had elected to say their own vows to each other.

Max went first, "Chloe, from the day we met, your strawberry blonde hair was a staple in my life. We saw each other almost every day, and we did the same things that all girls do: braid each other's hair, have playdates and sleepovers, steal your Mom's delicious cookies, take pictures…and play video games." Chloe grinned. "We were separated for a few years, but when I came back, we reconnected in a very big way. You may think that I saved your life, but it turns out that we saved each other. I will forever remember the day we became lovers by the lighthouse, and engaged four years later at the same place. You are the other half of my soul, and when I feel that I can't go on, you are always there for me. I feel stronger when you are with me, and I know that I can always count on you to know me better than I know myself sometimes. If I do nothing else with my life, I can at least say that I found the one person who will always love me unconditionally."

Chloe took a few seconds to compose herself before saying her vow, "Max, you're the most lovable hipster I've ever met. Our friendship was forged on the fact that we liked all the same things, even though our personalities were different. You made me enjoy video games, and I introduced you to actual music. My darkest years were when you weren't by my side, but then you came charging back in like a flash of light. From that point on, you have always been my light. You guided me from a very destructive rebel to a _con_ structive rebel, and I will always be your partner in crime. I'm looking forward to filling up many more photo albums together for us to treasure in the many years we will have together. You saved my life twice over Max, and I will gladly spend each day loving you because of who you are. Even if you're a hipster, you'll always be my hipster!"

If everyone in the audience was crying because of Max's vow, everyone was laughing because of Chloe's. She was just as loving and compassionate, but the language she used was downright hilarious. Chloe had actually asked the pastor if her vow was okay, and Pastor Megan said that it was fine, as long as it contained her true feelings and would convey her love for Max. Truth be told, Pastor Megan was a bit of a rebel herself, and she liked how Chloe casually shattered the conventional norm.

Pastor Megan first turned to Max and asked, "Maxine Caulfield, do you take Chloe Price to be your lawfully wedded wife, from this day forward, to always support, care, and love, to be faithful to in the good times and the bad, to reassure her when doubt clouds her mind, and to be a ray of hope for her when she feels lost for as long as you both shall live?"

Max smiled, "I do."

"Chloe Price, do you take Maxine Caulfield to be your lawfully wedded wife, to always support, care, and love, to be faithful to in the good times and the bad, to reassure her when doubt clouds her mind, and to be her beacon of hope when she feels lost for as long as you both shall live?"

Chloe beamed, "I do."

Pastor Megan smiled. It was a true joy to see two people as extremely in-tune with each other as Max and Chloe were. They would be a wonderful couple indeed.

"By the power invested in me, it gives me great pleasure to announce the two of you as wives. The brides may kiss!"

Max and Chloe lifted each other's veils and gave each other a kiss that was filled with all of their love for the other.

"I present Mrs. Maxine and Mrs. Chloe Caulfield!"

The audience erupted into applause and Max and Chloe were surrounded as well-wishers came to greet them and congratulate them on their marriage. Unbeknownst to the rest of the crowd, there were two people who were just as enthusiastic as the rest, but only one person had seen them. William Price was overcome with emotion as his only daughter was married to the most friend she had ever had, and Rachel Amber applauded with a huge smile on her face.

As they exited, Rachel caught Max's eye and waved. Max smiled and waved back.

At the reception, there was a card lying at Max's seat. Max placed in the pile with the rest of the cards, but took note that it almost seemed to glow, as if brighter than even the brightest white envelope.

That evening, after the reception and the dozens of photos, several of which Max had taken with her ever-trusty Polaroid, Chloe and Max were in their room together and reading through all of the cards they had received. They reached the luminous envelope, and inside was a single note that read,

"Max, always remember that everyone has the power to change the world. You don't need to be able to time travel to make a difference in the lives of others. As long as you reach out with good intentions, you can make a positive impact in someone's life. You've been doing that very well. Keep up the great work."

The note was unsigned, but a look between Max and Chloe confirmed who it was.

Chloe smiled as she read the note, "I think you have made quite a difference in the lives of some people, Max. I can think of one in particular."

Max returned her lover's smile, "Oh, really? Who might that be?"

Chloe moved so that their foreheads were touching, "She's right here, and she's very grateful for you loving her."

Max kissed her forehead and cooed, "I am very happy to love her," before losing herself in Chloe.

Outside, a luminous white butterfly sat on the window and shimmered in happiness. All it took was one act of courage to change a person's life, and the lives of others as well.

The future was very bright indeed.


End file.
